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WHEI^E  TO  FlflD  THE]V[. 

f  Baker's  celebrated  Oration  at  the  Burial  of  Broderick, 
[1859],  so  often  referred  to  and  sought  for,  can  be  found  only  in 
"  Representative  Men  of  the  Pacific." 

h^  1         McDouGAi,i.'s  sportive  remarks  on  drink  in  the  United  States 

/Senate,  unparalleled  for  dignified  humor,  although  they  may  "make 
the  judicious  grieve  ;"  also  his  nobler  thoughts  and  statelier  sen- 
tences on  the  death  of  Baker,  can  be  found  only  in  this  book. 

Thos.  Starr  King's  Lecture  on  Temperance  [i860],  his 
Masonic  Oration  [1863],  and  his  moving  words  at  the  Burial  of 
Baker  [1861],  live  only  in  this  now  rare  work. 


Baker's  beautiful  "Atlantic  Cable  Address,"  contain- 
ing his  memorable  Apostrophe  to  Science  and  his  oft-quoted 
allusion  to  the  Comet  of  1858,  has  not  perished,  but  is  preserved 
only  in  the  "  California  Scrap-Book." 

A  fine  address  [Agricultural  Fair],  by  Newton  Booth, 
Thos.  Starr  King's  inspiring  lecture  on  Yosemite,  and  other 
superior  productions,  are  in  the  Scrap-Book  only. 


A  necdotes  and  Reminiscences  of  the  Notable  Men  of  the  Far 

West  Bar,  are  told  only  in  "  Bench  and  Bar  in  California." 

No  other  book  contains  a  graphic  account,  by  an  eye-witness, 

of  the  great  Broderick-Terry  Duel,  [San  Francisco,  1859.] 

"  A  novel  is  nowhere  in  comparison  with  this  book,"  writes  Dr.  Bonte, 
of  the  State  University. 


Striking  thoughts  on  many  themes,  carefully  selected  from 
California  Writers  and  Speakers,  are  brought  together  only  in 
the  "  California  Anthology."     It  is  here  that 

"Bright-eyed  Fancy,  hovering  o'er. 

Scatters  from  her  pictured  urn 
Thoughts  that  breathe  and  words  that  burn." 


These  works  are  by  the  undersigned,  and  are  sold  free  of 
postage  for  $5  per  book,  except  the  "Anthology,"  which  is 
$3.50.       Address 

OSCAR  TT.  SHUCK, 
509  Kearny  Street,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 


c:^V^t^t^  c:^  c/^ 


REPRESENTATIVE  AND  LEADING 

MEN  OF  THE  PACIFIC 

BEIXO 

ORIGINAL   SKETCHES 


LIVES  AXn  CHARACTERS   OP   THE    PRINCIPAL    MEN',    LIVING   AND   DECEASED,    OF   THE   PACIFIC 
STATES  AND  TERRITORIES — PIONEERS,  POLlflCIANS,  LAWYERS,  DOCTORS,  MERCHANTS, 

ORATORS,  AND  DIVINES TO  WHICH  ARE  ADDED  THEIR  SPEECHES,  ADDRESSES, 

ORATIONS,  EULOGIES,  LECTURES,  AND  POEMS,  UPON  A  VARIETY 
OF  SUBJECTS,  INCLUDING  THE  HAPPIEST  FORENSIC  EFFORTS 


AND  OTHER  TOPULAR  ORATORS. 


EDITED    BY 

O  S  C  A  3^      T  .      SHUCK 

Compiler  of  the  "California  Scrap  Book." 


Embellished    with    Handsome    Steel    Portraits. 


They  came— the  Foundcs  of  a  State, 

The  men  with  spirit  brave  and  free, 
Who  snatched  the  magic  wand  of  Fate 

And  shaped  their  own  high  destiny. — J.  T.  Goodman. 

No  species  of  writing  seems  more  worthy  of  cultivation  than   Biography. — Langhorne. 


SAN  FRANCISCO: 

BACON    AND   COMPANY,    PRINTERS    AND    PUBLISHERS, 

No.  536  Clay  Street,  between  Montgomery  and  Sansome. 
I   870. 


iS^Ol 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1869,  by 
BACON   AND   COMPANY, 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States,  for  the  District 

of  California. 


/  o 


93  C 


TO 


WILLIAM   T.    COLEMAN,   ESO. 


OF   YONKERS,  V  NEWr  YORK 


A      CALIFORNIA       PIONEER       OF       1849, 


AND,  FOR  MAKY  YEARS,  A  LEADING  MERCHANT  OF  THE 


Pftv0i)0Ui$  0f  the  pacific, 


THIS  VOLUME  IS  INSCRIBED  IN  TOKEN  OF  THE   REGARD   ENTERTAINED   FOR  HIS  CHARACTER  BY 


The      Editor^. 


PREFACE 


The  Editor  has  long  entertained  the  behef,  that  a  vol- 
ume of  biographical  sketches  of  men  who  have  attained 
an  honorable  prominence  in  the  young  commonwealths  of 
the  Pacific  would  be  received  with  favor  by  the  reading 
public,  as  containing  not  only  notices  of  leading  charac- 
ters, but  also  a  condensed  history  of  the  remarkable  times 
in  which  the  infancy  of  those  States  was  cast. 

Such  a  volume  he  now  lays  before  the  people.  He  has 
improved  upon  his  original  design,  by  incorporating  into 
the  work  a  large  number  of  Speeches,  Orations,  Poems, 
etc.,  delivered  at  various  times  and  places  throughout  the 
Pacific  States ;  which,  in  his  judgment,  render  the  work 
highly  attractive,  interesting  and  valuable. 

The  volume  will  be  found  to  contain  twenty-four 
Speeches,  Orations  and  Addresses ;  six  Poems,  and  fifty- 
nine  Biographical  Sketches.  Of  the  latter  a  few  are  not 
original,  and  it  is  necessary  to  say  a  word  concerning 
them. 

That  of  Gen.  E.  D.  Baker,  by  Hon.  Edward  Stanly, 
was  not  written  by  that  gentleman  for  this  work,  but  is 
taken  from  his  Eulogy,  delivered  in  San  Francisco,  in 
1 86 1.  This  chaste  production  reappears  here,  with  some 
changes  which  the  Editor  deemed  important,  and  which 
the  Author  will  no  doubt  excuse. 

From  Gen.  Cullum's  "  Army  Register  "  were  procured 
the  necessary  data  for  the  sketch  of  Gen.  Stevens. 


b  PREFACE. 

The  notice  of  James  King  of  William  is  taken  almost 
entirely  from  a  brief  biography  of  him,  issued  in  pam- 
phlet shortly  after  his  death.  The  original  sketch  has 
received  many  important  corrections  from  the  pen  of  a 
gentleman  of  San  Francisco,  who  was  intimate  with 
Mr.  King,  but  who  thinks  it  unnecessary  that  his  name 
should  appear. 

The  notice  of  Col.  A.  M.  Pico  is  inserted,  with  a  few 
slight  alterations,  as  it  first  appeared  in  the  San  Francisco 
*'News  Letter"  of  1869. 

The  article  on  Delazon  Smith  is  taken  from  the  New 
York  "  Democratic  Review  "  of  i860. 

The  interesting  narrative  of  Gen.  Sutter's  early  move- 
ments in  California  was  first  embodied  in  a  petition  sub- 
mitted to  Congress  on  behalf  of  the  old  veteran  several 
years  ago,  praying  the  nation  to  repair  his  heavy  losses 
suffered  at  the  hands  of  the  "  settlers  "  of  1849. 

The  name  of  the  writer  of  each  of  the  other  sketches 
will  be  found  at  the  head  of  the  proper  notice,  except  in 
a  few  instances,  in  which,  by  the  author's  particular  re- 
quest, his  name  is  not  given. 

Although  the  Editor  claims  no  credit  for  the  manner 
in  which  he  has  performed  his  task,  yet  he  is  proudly 
conscious  of  the  fact  that  he  is  giving  to  the  world  a 
work  of  beauty  and  merit;  for  (and  who  will  gainsay  it.^^) 
no  volume  enriched  with  selections  from  the  master- 
pieces of  Baker,  McDougall,  Randolph  and  T.  Starr 
King,  can  be  other  than  useful  and  meritorious. 

O.  T.  S. 
San  Francisco,  Cal.,  February,  1870. 


3sc 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS, 


Title  of  Article.  Xame  op  Acthok.         Page. 

John  A.  Sctter 1 1 

Jose  Axtoxio  De  La  Gieura Alfred  Robimon 2o 

PiERSox  B.  Reading 29 

Lelaxd  Stanford W.  E.  Brown S5 

John  Bigler The  Editor 47 

Edward  Dickinson  Bakek Hon.  Edicard  Staidy 63 

Poem  to  a  Wave Col.  E.  D.  Baker 1Z 

Apostrophe  to  Science "        "        "      V4 

Eloquent  Allusion  to  the  Comet  of  1858 "         "         "      74 

Tribute  to  Freedom "         "         "      76 

Address  at  the  Burial  of  Baker Rev.  T.  Stai-r  King 80 

Matthew  P.  Deady Harvey  W.  Scott 85 

Extract  from  Address  to  Portland  Law  Association.  ..Jiulae  J/.  P.  Deady .105 

Junipero  Serra Ill 

George   Gordon B.  P.  Avery 115 

Remarks  on  the  Life  and  Genius  of  Robert  Burns George    Gordon 117 

Matthew  Hall  McAllister Henry  E.  HlgMon 129 

Joseph  G.  Baldwin J.  G.  Howard 135 

Cornelius  K.  Garrison William  V.  Wells 143 

Messaj^e  to  the  Common  Council  of  San  Francisco  ( 1 853)  C.  K.   Garrison 147 

Thomas  Starr  King .165 

Telegram  to  the  People  of  California  on  the  Death  of 

Thomas  Starr  King Rev.  H.  W.  Belloies 174 

Resolutions  of  Unitarian  Church  of  San  Francisco,  in 

regard  to  Death  of  Thomas  Starr  King 175 

Address  on  the  Life  and  Services  of  T.  Starr  King Robert  B.  Swain 177 

Poem  on  Death  of  T.  StaiT  King John  G.  Whittier 206 

Lecture  on  Temperance Rev.  T.  Starr  King 207 

Masonic  Oration "         "  "     ....211 

Charles  E.  De  Long The  Editor 219 

Mariano  Guadalupe  Yallejo. Col.    C.  E.  Pickett 225 

Elias  S.  Cooper Dr.  L.  C.  Lane 237 

Poem  on  Death  of  Dr.  Cooper T.  G.  Spear 246 

Joseph  W.  Winans TJie  Editor 249 

"The  Golden  Wedding." Hon.  J.  W.  Winans 254 

The  Dignity  of  Labor "        "  "     255 

"  Mundus"— A  Poem "        "  "     ....268 


TABLE    OF   CONTENTS. 


Title  of  Article.  Name  of  Author.         Page. 

Gkorge  L.  Woods Calvin  B.  McDonald. .   2T1 

Frank  Tilford 77ie  IJditor 211 

The  History,  Genius  and  Resources  of  Ireland Hon.  Frank  Tilford. .  .288 

Caleb  T.  Fay The  Editor 303 

William  I.  Ferguson "        " 319 

Reminiscences  of  Ferguson Hon.    W.  H.  Herndon. .  320 

Remarks  on  Death  of  Ferguson Col.  E.  D.  Baker 32Y 

Discourse"       "       "         "         Rev.  J.  A.  Benton 332 

Kdward  J.  C.  Kewex J.  G.  Howard 341 

Oration  before  California  Pioneers  (1854) Col.  E.  J.  G.  Keicen... .  346 

Charles  Westjuoreland B.  P.  Avery 361 

Eugene  Casserly 365 

Eulogy  on  Daniel  Webster Hon.  E.  Casserly 370 

Henry  Wager  Halleck ■. Judge  T.  W.  Freelon. . . 375 

David  C.   Broderick 385 

Account   of  the   Duel   between   David    S.  Terry  and 

David  C.  Broderick 393 

Funeral  Oration  over  Body  of  David  C.  Broderick Col.  E.  D.  Baker 398 

Eloquent  Protest  against  the  "  Code  of  Honor." "         "         "       402 

Isaac  N.  Roop Jtidge  A.  T.  Bruce 405 

Thomas  H.  Selby ,  William   V.    Wells 411 

James   Nisbet 421 

Franklin  Tutiiill 425 

Serranus  Clinton  Hastings T.  P.  Madden 433 

James  Willis  Nesmitu The  Editor 439 

Speech   on   the  Bill   to  Establish  a  Branch  Mint  in 

Oregon , Hon.  J.  W.  Kesmith 443 

Samuel  Brannan William   V.    Wills 455 

Philip  Legget  Edwards Robert  E.   Draper .461 

Hugh  Campbell  Murray The  Editor 473 

Remarks  on  Death  of  Judge  Murray Judge  Wm.  T.  Wallace.  All 

Do.  do.  Judge  David  S.  Terry.  .478 

Henry  M.  Gray Wdliam  V.    Wells 479 

Masonic  Oration Dr.  H.  M.  Gray 486 

Tod  Robinson 77i.e  Editor 495 

Isaac  Inoalls  Stevens "        "      499 

.Ti: AN  Bautista  Alvarado 503 

Thompsom  Campbell lion.  F.  F.  Taylor 509  ' 

John  B.  Weller 21ie  Editor 515 

Cornelius  Cole 523 

John  R.  McConnkll William  H.  Rhodes 529 

Ogden  Hoffman The  Editor 63^^. 

Isaac  Rowell , Calvin  B.  McDonald. . .  539 

Nathaniel  Bennett T/ie  Editor 545 

Oration  on  the  Admission  of  California  into  the  Union 

1650 Judge  y.  Bennett 553 


TABLE    OF    CONTENTS. 


Title  of  Article.                     .                                                        Name  of  Author.          Page 
James  King  of  William 563 

Prize  Poem  on  Death  of  James  King  of  William WiUkan  H.  Rhodes. . .  .SVQ 

Joseph  C.  Tucker WW.aua    V.   Welh 581 

Edmund  Randolph WiU'uuu  II.  Rhodes 591 

Address  on  the  History  of  California  (1860) lion.  Edmund Randolph.h^^ 

Milton  S.  Latham Judge  Gaven  D.  Hall. .  609 

Robert  B.  Swain William  V.   Wells 615 

Remarks  on  the  Operations  of  the  Society  for  improv- 
ing the  Condition  of  the  Poor Robert  B.  Sicain 621 

Frederick  F.  Low William  V.  Wells 625 

Antonio  Maria  Pico 631 

William  Morris  Stewart 635 

Hugh  P.  Gallagher I).  F.  D 645 

Lecture  on  Rome Rev.  II.  P.  Gallagher. .  659 

Henry  Huntley  Haight 663 

Address  on  the  Completion  of  the  Pacific  Railroad. .  .  Gov.  If.  H.  Haight 667 

Delazon  Smith 677 

Stephen  Johnson  Field The  Editor 685 

James  A.  McDougall William  H.  Rhodes.  . .  .689 

Remarks  on  Death  of  Col.  E.   D.  P.aker Gen.  j:  A.  McDougall.  mo 

Remarks  on  the  Sale  of  Li»iuors  iu  the  National  Capitol 

Building "         "  "         .700 


LIST   OF   EMBELLISHMENTS. 


Page. 

1.  HOX.  THOMAS  H.  SELBY Frontispiece 

2.  EX-GOY.  LELAND  STANFORD 35 

3.  SAN  FRANCISCO  IN  1849 51 

4.  GEN.  E.  D.  BAKER 63 

5.  HON.  C.  K.  GARRISON 143 

6.  REY.  THOMAS  STARR   KING 165 

1.  HON.  CHARLES  E.   DE  LONG. 219 

8.  HON.  JOSEPH  W.  WINANS 249 

9.  HON.  CALEB  T.  FAY 303 

10.  COL.  E.  J.  C.   KEWEN 341 

11.  GEN.  H.  W.  HALLECK 3'75 

12.  JUDGE   S.  C.  HASTINGS 433 

13.  SAMUEL  BRANNAN,   Esq 455 

14.  DR.  H.  M.    GRAY 479 

15.  GEN.  ISAAC  L  STEVENS 499 

16.  EX-GOV.  JOHN  B.    WELLER 516 

17.  HON.  CORNELIUS   COLE 528 

18.  DR.  ISAAC    ROWELL 539      'vu^" 

19.  DR.  J.  C.  TUCKER.... 581 

20.  ROBERT  B.   SWAIN,  Esq 615 

21.  GOV.  H.   H.   HAIGHT 663 

22.  DELAZON  SMITH,  Esq 611 

23.  GEN.  J.  A.  McDOUGALL. 689 


JOHN  A.  SUTTER.* 


GEx.  Sutter  was  born  March  1st,  1803,  in  the  Grand 
Ducliy  of  Baden,  where  his  early  boyhood  was 
passed.  His  father,  who  was  a  clergyman  of  the  Luther- 
an Church,  afterwards  removed  to  Switzerland,  and 
settled  there  with  his  family.  He  purchased  for  himself 
and  heirs  the  rights  and  immunities  of  Swiss  citizenship. 
The  statement,  in  the  volume  entitled  ''Annals  of  San 
Francisco,"  that  ''John  A.  Sutter  was  the  son  of  a  Swiss 
of  the  canton  Berne,"  is  incorrect.  Our  subject  received 
a  good  education,  both  civil  and  military. 

Early  in  life  he  married  a  Bernese  lady,  and  was 
blessed  with  several  children.  At  the  age  of  thirty-one, 
he  determined  to  gratify  a  desire  he  had  long  cherished, 
to  emigrate  to  the  United  States.  Xot  knowing  whether 
or  not  he  should  settle  permanently  in  the  "Great 
Eepublic,"  he  concluded  to  leave  his  family  behind  him. 
He  arrived  at  New  York  in  July,  1834.  After  visiting 
several  of  the  Western  States,  he  settled  in  Missouri, 
and  there  resided  for  several  years.  At  St.  Charles, 
Missouri,  he  made,  before  the  proper  tribunal,  his  dec- 
laration to  become  a  citizen  of  the  United  States.  During 
his  residence  in  Missouri,  he  made  a  short  visit  to  New_ 
Mexico,  where) he  met  with  many  trappers  and  hunters, 
returned  from  Upper  California,  whose  glowing  descrip- 
tions confirmed  his  previous  impressions,  and  excited 
within  his  breast  an  ardent  desire  to  behold  and  wander 
over  the  rich  lands  and  beautiful  valleys,  to  breathe  the 
pure  air  and  enjoy  the  unrivalled  climate,  of  that  then 
almost  unknown  region.     Upon  returning  to  Missouri, 

*  For  explanatory  note,  see  Preface. 


12  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

he  determined  to  reach  the  Pacific  by  joining  some  one 
of  the  trapping  expeditions  of  the  American  or  English 
Fur  Companies.  But  great  obstacles  were  to  be  sur- 
mounted, and  long  years  were"  to  intervene,  before  his 
feet  would  rest  upon  the  virgin  soil  of  California.  On 
the  first  day  of  April,  1838,  the  General  was  enabled,  for 
the  first  time,  to  connect  himself  with  a  trapping  ex- 
pedition. On  that  day,  he  left  the  Missouri  with  Captain 
Tripp  of  the  American  Fur  Company,  and  travelled  with 
his  party  to  their  rendezvous  in  the  Rocky  Mountains. 
There  he  parted  with  the  expedition,  and  with  six  horse- 
men, crossed  the  mountains,  and  after  encountering  the 
usual  lot  of  dangers  and  hardships,  arrived  at  Fort 
Vancouver. 

Having  before  learned  that  there  was  no  known  land- 
communication  with  California  from  the  valleys  of  the 
Columbia  or  Willamette  in  winter,  and  there  being  then 
a  vessel  of  the  Hudson  Bay  Company  ready  to  sail  from 
Fort  Yancouver  to  the  Sandwich  Islands,  Gen.  Sutter 
took  passage  in  her,  hoping  to  find  at  the  islands  some 
means  of  conveyance  to  California.  Only  one  of  the 
men  who  had  remained  with  him  thus  far,  consented  to 
accompany  him.  On  reaching  the  islands,  he  found  no 
prospect  of  a  conveyance,  and  after  remaining  five 
months,  as  the  only  means  of  accomplishing  his  purpose, 
he  shipped  as  supercargo,  without  pay,  on  an  English 
vessel,  chartered  by  a  party  of  Americans,  bound  for 
Sitka. 

After  discharging  his  cargo  at  the  latter  place  to  the 
full  satisfaction  of  the  charterers.  Gen.  Sutter,  with  their 
authority,  directed  his  vessel  southw^ard,  and  sailed  down 
the  Pacific  Coast,  encountering  heavy  gales.  He  was 
driven  into  the  bay  of  San  Francisco  in  distress,  and  on 
tlie  second  day  of  July,  1839 — -just  five  years  after  the 
date  of  his  arrival  in  New  York  from  Switzerland — 
anchored  his  little  craft  opposite  Yerba  Buena,  now  San 
Francisco. 

He  was  immediately  waited  upon  by  a  Mexican  official, 
with  an  armed  force,  and  ordered  to  leave  without  delay, 
the  officer  informing  him  that  Monterey  was  the  ''port 


JOHN   A.    SUTTER.  13 

of  entry."  He  succeeded,  however,  in  obtaining  permis- 
sion to  remain  fort3'-eight  hours  to  get  supplies. 

A  few  days  later,  upon  arriving  at  the  ''port  of 
entry,"  Gen.  Sutter  waited  upon  Governor  Alvarado  and 
communicated  to  him  his  desire  to  settle  in  Upper  Cali- 
fornia, on  the  Sacramento.  Gov.  Alvarado  expressed 
himself  much  gratified  upon  learning  his  visitor's  wish, 
particularly  when  he  understood  his  desire  to  settle  on 
the  Sacramento ;  saying  the  Indians  in  that  quarter  were 
very  hostile,  and  would  not  permit  any  whites  to  settle 
there ;  that  they  robbed  the  inhabitants  of  San  Jose  and 
the  lower  settlements  of  their  horses,  cattle,  etc.  He 
readily  gave  Gen.  Sutter  a  passport,  with  power  to  settle 
any  territory  he  should  deem  suitable  for  his  colony  and 
purposes,  and  requested  him  to  return  to  Monterey  in 
one  year  from  that  time,  when  his  Mexican  citizenship 
would  be  acknowledged,  and  he  would  receive  a  "grant" 
for  the  land  he  might  solicit. 

Thereupon,  the  General  returned  to  Yerba  Buena  and 
chartered  a  schooner,  with  some  small  boats,  and  started 
upon  an  exploring  expedition  on  the  Sacramento  river. 

Upon  diligent  inquiry,  he  could  not  find  any  one  at  Yerba 
Buena  who  had  ever  seen  the  Sacramento  rker^  or  who  could 
describe  to  him  where  he  could  find  its  mouth  ;  the 
people  of  that  place  only  professed  to  know  that  some 
large  river  emptied  into  one  of  the  connected  bays  lying 
northerly  from  their  town.  Gen.  Sutter  consumed  eight 
dwi>^  in  the  effort  to  find  the  mouth  of  that  river. 

AiUT  finding  it,  and  ascending  the  river  to  a  point 
about  ten  miles  below  the  place  where  Sacramento  city 
now  stands,  he  encountered  the  first  large  party  of  In- 
dians; there  were  about  two  hundred  of  them,  all  armed 
and  painted  for  war ;  they  exhibited  every  mark  of  hos- 
tility, save  an  actual  outbreak.  Fortunately,  there  were 
two  among  them  who  understood  Spanish,  and  with 
whom  the  General  engaged  in  conversation.  He  quieted 
them  by  assurances  tliat  there  were  no  Spaniards  (against 
whom  they  were  particularly  exasperated)  in  his  party : 
that  lie  wished  to  settle  in  their  country,  and  trade  with 
them.     He  showed  them  his  agricultural  implements  and 


14  REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

commodities  of  trade,  which  he  had  provided  for  the 
purpose,  and  proposed  to  make  a  sort  of  treaty  with 
them.  He  furthermore  explained  to  them  the  advan- 
tages which  they  could  mutually  derive  from  each  other. 
Pleased  with  these  assurances,  they  became  contented, 
the  crowd  dispersed,  and  the  two  who  spoke  the  Spanish 
language  accompanied  the  General  and  his  party  as  far  as 
the  mouth  of  Feather  river,  to  show  them  the  country.^ 
All  other  parties  of  Indians  seen,  fled  at  the  sight  of  the 
vessel  and  boats. 

Parting  with  his  two  Indian  interpreters  and  guides 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Feather  river.  Gen.  Sutter  ascended 
the  latter  stream  a  considerable  distance,  when  a  few  of 
his  white  men  became  alarmed  at  the  surrounding  dangers, 
and  insisted  upon  returning,  which  the  General  was  con- 
strained to  do. 

On  his  descent,  he  entered  the  mouth  of  the  Ameri- 
can river,  and  on  the  15th  day  of  August,  1839,  landed 
at  the  point  on  the  south  bank  of  that  stream  where  he 
afterwards  established  his  tannery,  in  the  present  bounds 
of  Sacramento  city.  On  the  following  morning,  after 
landing  all  his  effects,  he  informed  the  disaffected  whites 
that  all  who  wished  to  return  to  Yerba  Buena  could  do 
so ;  that  the  Kanakas  were  willing  to  remain,  and  that  he 
had  resolved  to  do  so,  if  alone.  Three  of  the  whites 
determined  to  leave,  and  he  put  them  in  possession  of 
the  schooner,  with  instructions  to  deliver  her  to  her 
owners.     They  set  sail  for  Yerba  Buena  the  same  day. 

Three  weeks  thereafter.  Gen.  Sutter  removed  to  the 
spot  upon  which  he  afterwards  erected  Fort  Siitter. 
This  old  Sacramento  landmark  is  still  standing,  but  its 
weather-beaten  walls  are  crumbling  into  dust;  no  hand 
is  ready  to  strengthen  and  protect  them,  and  not  long 
will  the  venerable  structure  remind  the  early  pioneer  of 
the  virgin  days  when  the  discovery  of  gold  had  not  yet 
given  the  land  over  as  a  prey  to  the  adventurous  and  the 
lawless. 

In  the  early  days  of  the  settlement,  Gen.  Sutter  en- 
countered many  troubles  with  tlie  Indians,  who  organ- 
ized  secret   expeditions,   as   he   afterwards   learned,    to 


JOHN   A.    SUTTER.  15 

destroy  him  and  his  party;  but,  directed  by  an  over- 
ruling Providence,  he  defeated  or  frustrated  all  their 
machinations,  and  those  who  were  at  first  his  greatest 
enemies,  came  to  be  his  best  and  most  steadfast  friends. 

The  General  now  devoted  himself  energetically  to 
agriculture  and  stock-raising.  It  will  be  seen  that  he 
became  very  wealthy  and  prosperous. 

4n:  the  fall  of  the  year  1839,  he  purchased  of  Senor 
Martinez,  who  resided  not  far  from  San  Francisco  bay, 
three  hundred  head  of  cattle,  thirty  horses,  and  thirty 
mares.  During  that  fall,  eight  more  white  men  joined 
his  colony.  When  he  commenced  those  improvements 
that  resulted  in  the  erection  of  Sutter's  Fort  and  his 
establishment  there,  he  had  much  trouble  in  procuring 
suitable  lumber  and  timber.  He  floated  some  down  the 
Amepcan  from  the  mountains,  and  was  also  compelled 
to  send  to  Bodega  on  the  sea-coast,  a  distance  of  several 
hundred  miles. 

In  August,  1840,  he  was  joined  by  the  five  men  who 
crossed  the  Rocky  Mountains  with  him,  and  whom  he 
had  left  in  Oregon.  His  colony  now  numbered  twenty- 
five  men,  seventeen  whites  and  eight  Kanakas.  During 
the  fall  of  this  year,  the  Mokelumne  Indians  became 
troublesome  by  stealing  the  live-stock  of  the  settlers; 
they  even  threatened  the  destruction  of  the  settlement, 
and  compelled  Gen.  Sutter,  by  their  acts  and  menaces, 
to  make  open  war  against  them.  He  marched  with  his 
forces  thirty  miles  in  the  night-time  to  the  camp  of  the 
Indians,  (where  they  were  concentrating  large  forces  for 
a  movement  against  him)  and  attacked  them — some  two 
hundred  warriors — with  such  effect  that  they  retreated, 
and  being  hotly  pursued,  they  sued  for  peace,  which  was 
readily  granted,  and  ever  afterwards  mutually  main- 
tained. 

Shortly  after  this  encounter.  Gen.  Sutter  purchased 
one  thousand  more  head  of  cattle  and  seventy-five  horses 
and  mares.  His  colony  continued  to  increase  by  the 
addition  of  every  foreigner,  Americans  and  others,  who 
came  into  the  country:  they  sought  his  place  as  one  of 
security. 


16  REPRESENT ATIYE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

The  trappers  he  furnished  with  supplies,  and  pur- 
chased or  received  in  exchange  their  furs ;  the  mechanics 
and  laborers  he  either  employed  or  procured  them  work. 

In  June,  1841,  he  revisited  Monterey,  the  capital, 
where  he  was  declared  a  Mexican  citizen,  and  received 
from  Gov.  Alvarado  a  ''grant"  for  his  land  by  the  name 
of  ''New  Helvetia,"  a  survey  of  which  he  had  caused  to 
be  made  before  that  time. 

Thereupon,  he  was  honored  with  a  commission  from 
the  Govenor,  of  "  Representante  del  govierno  en  las  fron- 
teras  del  norte  y  encargado  de  la  justicia." 

Soon  after  his  return  to  his  settlement,  he  was  visited 
by  Captain  Ringgold,  of  the  United  States  Exploring 
Expedition,  under  Commodore  Wilkes,  with  officers  and 
men,  and  about  the  same  time,  by  Mr.  Alexander  RotchefF, 
Governor  of  the  Russian  possessions,  "Ross  &  Bodega," 
who,  during  his  stay,  offered  to  sell  to  Gen.  Sutter  the 
Russian  possessions,  settlements,  and  ranches  of  Ross 
&  Bodega.  The  terms  were  such  as  induced  him  to  start 
with  Rotcheflf  for  those  possessions  and  examine  the 
same ;  after  which  he  made  the  purchase  of  the  land  and 
posessions  for  the  sum  of  $30,000 — the  personal  property 
for  a  few  thousand  dollars  more.  The  live-stock  then 
consisted  of  over  2,000  head  of  cattle,  over  1,000  head 
of  horses,  50  or  more  mules,  and  over  2,000  head  of 
sheep,  the  greater  part  of  which  were  driven  to  New 
Helvetia,  the  residue  left  on  the  premises  in  the  charge 
of  an  agent  whom  he  kept  on  the  property  to  hold  pos- 
session of  the  same. 

This  increase  of  his  resources,  together  with  the 
natural  increase  of  his  stock,  besides  several  smaller  lots 
purchased  from  other  parties,  enabled  him  the  more 
rapidly  to  advance  his  settlement  and  improvements. 

In  the  year  1844,  he  petitioned  Govenor  Manuel 
Micheltorena  for  the  grant  or  purchase  of  the  "  sobrante," 
or  surplus,  over  the  first  eleven  leagues  of  the  land  within 
the  bounds  of  the  survey  accompanying  the  Alvarado 
grant,  which  the  Governor  agreed  to  let  him  have ;  but, 
for  causes  growing  out  of  political  troubles  then  disturb- 
ing the  public  repose,  the  grant  was  nut  liually  executed 


JOHN   A.    SUTTER  1  7 

until  the  5tli  day  of  February  a.  d.  1845;  during  which 
time  he  had  rendered  valuable  military  services,  and  ad- 
vanced to  the  Government  large  amounts  of  property  and 
outlays,  exceeding  in  value  the  sum  of  $8,000,  to  enable 
it  to  suppress  the  Castro  rebellion;  in  consideration  of 
all  which  he  acquired,  by  purchase  and  personal  services, 
the  lands  called  the  ''sobrante,"  or  surplus. 

At  that  time  he  also  received  from  the  last  named 
Governor,  the  commission  of  "  Commandante  militar  de 
las  fronteras  del  norte  y  encargado  de  la  justicia."  After 
this  time  the  war  between  the  United  States  and  Mexico 
came  on;  and  although  Gen.  Sutter  was  an  officer  under 
the  Mexican  Government,  and  bound  to  it  by  his  al- 
legiance, yet,  upon  all  occasions,  such  was  his  respect 
toward  the  citizens  and  the  institutions  of  the  United 
States,  that  whenever  any  party  of  American  citizens, 
civil  or  in  military  service,  visited  him,  his  unbounded 
hospitalities  were  uniformly  and  cordially  extended  to 
them;  and  when  the  country  surrendered  to  American 
forces,  the  General,  who  had  for  some  time  been  con- 
vinced of  the  instability  of  the  Mexican  Government, 
upon  request,  did,  on  the  11th  of  July,  1846,  hoist  the 
American  flag  with  good  heart,  accompanied  by  a  salute 
of  artillery  from  the  guns  of  his  fort. 

Soon  after.  Lieutenant  Missroon,  of  the  United  States 
Navy,  came  up  and  organized  a  garrison  for  Sutter's  Fort, 
principally  out  of  his  former  forces,  of  whites  and  Indians, 
and  gave  to  Gen.  Sutter  the  command,  which  he  main- 
tained until  peace  returned.  He  was  then  appointed  by 
Commodore  Stockton  Alcalde  of  the  District,  and  by  Gen. 
Kearny  Indian  Agent,  with  a  salary  of  $750  per  annum; 
but  a  single  trip  in  the  discharge  of  his  duty  as  Indian 
Agent  cost  him  $1,600,  which  induced  him  to  resign  that 
office. 

Gen.  Sutter  was  now  in  the  fall  tide  of  prosperity. 
His ,  settlement  continued  to  grow  and  his  property  to 
accumulate  until  the  latter  part  of  January,  1848.  lie 
had  then  completed  his  establishment  at  the  fort;  had 
performed  all  the  conditions  of  his  grants  of  land;  had, 
at  an  expense  of  at  least  $25,000,  cut  a  race  of  three 
2 


\ 


18  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

miles  in  length  and  nearly  completed  a  flouring  mill,  for 
the  benefit  of  himself  and  the  country,  near  the  present 
town  of  Brighton;  had  expended  towards  the  erection 
of  a  saw-mill  near  the  town  of  Coloma  about  $10,000: 
had  sown  over  a  thousand  acres  of  land  in  wheat,  which 
promised  a  yield  of  over  40,000  bushels,  and  had  made 
preparations  for  other  crops;  was  then  the  owner  of 
about  8,000  head  of  cattle,  over  2,000  head  of  horses 
and  mules,  over  2,000  head  of  sheep,  and  over  1,000 
head  of  hogs;  and  was  in  the  undisturbed,  undisputed 
and  quiet  possession  of  the  extensive  lands  granted  him 
by  the  Mexican  Government.  From  the  centre  of  his 
broad  domain  cOuld  be  seen,  as  far  as  the  eye  could 
stretch  on  every  hand,  a  prospect  to  gladden  the  heart 
of  the  husbandman.  But  a  sad  change  was  about  to 
take  place  in  the  affairs  of  the  old  Pioneer:  a  grand 
event  was  about  to  transpire,  which,  while  it  would 
delight  and  electriiy  the  world  at  large,  was  yet  destined 
to  check  the  growth  of  the  settlement  at  Sutter's  Fort 
and  cast  a  blight  upon  its  prosperity.  Gen.  Sutter's 
mills  were  soon  to  cease  their  operations,  his  laborers 
and  mechanics  were  soon  to  desert  him,  his  possessions, 
his  riches,  his  hopes,  were  soon  to  be  scattered  and 
destroyed  before  the  impetuous  charge  of  the  gold- 
hunters. 

On  the  night  of  the  28th  of  January,  1848,  James  W. 
Marshall,  the  millwright  employed  upon  the  saw-mill 
before  mentioned,  arrived  at  the  Fort  from  the  moun- 
tains, and  informed  Gen.  Sutter  that  he  had  found  in  the 
mill-race  dug  for  the  saw-mill,  some  pieces  of  metal 
having  the  appearance  of  gold,  which  he  exhibited,  and 
which,  upon  application  of  the  proper  test,  was  found  to 
be,  indeed,  gold. 

Marshall,  one  day,  having  allowed  the  whole  body  of 
water  to  rush  through  the  tail-race  of  the  mill  for  the 
purpose  of  making  some  alterations  in  it,  observed,  while 
walking  along  the  bank  of  the  stream  early  in  the  follow- 
ing morning,  numerous  glistening  particles  among  the 
sand  and  gravel,  which  had  been  carried  off  by  the  force 
of    the   increased    body  of  water.      Collecting   several 


JOHN   A.    SUTTER.  19 

pieces,  he  hastened  to  his  employer — and  the  great  dis- 
covery was  soon  known. 

As  soon  as  he  could  prepare  himself,  the  General  re- 
turned with  Marshall  to  the  mill,  where  he  remained 
until  the  5th  day  of  February,  during  which  time  he 
became  satisfied  of  the  existence  of  abundance  of  gold 
at  that  place.  All  the  hands  there  at  work  were  in  Gen. 
Sutter's  employ:  he  urged  them  not  to  speak  of  the  dis- 
covery until  he  could  return  to  his  fort  and  have  his 
grist-mill  finished,  which  would  require  six  weeks  longer, 
and  secure  hands  to  finish  planting  his  crops ;  for"  if  the 
discovery  should  be  known  all  his  hands  would  desert 
him. 

He  returned  to  his  fort,  but  at  the  end  of  a  week  or 
ten  days  a  rumor  had  existed  that  a  gold  mine  had  been 
discovered  at  Sutter's  mill:  it  rapidly  spread,  and  soon 
the  reality  was  known  to  all.  Its  subsequent  history  is 
largely  intermingled  with  the  history  of  the  times.  The 
immediate  effect  was  that  Gen.  Sutter  was  deserted  by 
all  his  mechanics  and  laborers — white,  Kanaka,  and 
Indian.  The  mills  thus  deserted  became  a  dead  loss:  he 
could  not  hire  labor  to  further  plant  or  mature  his  crops 
or  reap  but  a  ^mall  part  after  the  grain  had  ripened. 
Few  hands  were  willing  to  work  for  even  an  ounce  of 
gold  a  day:  the  industrious  could  make  more  than  that 
in  the  mines.  Consequent  to  this  discovery  there  was  an 
immense  immigration,  composed  of  all  classes  of  men, 
many  of  whom  seemed  to  have  no  idea  of  the  rights  of 
property 

The  treaty  between  the  United  States  and  Mexico 
guaranteed  to  the  Mexican  who  should  remain  in  the 
country  a  protection  of  his  property.  Gen.  Sutter  re- 
garded himself  doubly  entitled  to  that  protection,  either 
as  a  Mexican  or  as  a  citizen  of  the  United  States,  (which 
latter  he  became  by  virtue  of  that  conquest  and  his 
original  declaration)  and  that  he  held  a  strong  claim 
upon  his  country's  justice. 

His  property  was  respected  for  a  season ;  but  when 
the  great  flood  of  immigration  which  poured  into  Cali- 
fornia in  the  years  1849  and  1850,  found  that  money 


I 


20  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

could  be  made  by  other  means  than  mining,  many  of  the 
new-comers  forcibly  entered  upon  his  land  and  com- 
menced cutting  and  selling  his  wood  and  using  his  grass, 
under  the  plea  that  his  land  was  vacant  and  unappro- 
priated land  of  the  United  States.  Lawyers  were  found 
who  sustained  them  in  their  trespass  and  advocated  their 
rights,  although  there  were  none  who  came  from  any 
part  of  Christendom  who  had  not  heard  of  the  General's 
claims  and  large  landed  estates,  the  full  justice  given  to 
and  recognition  of  which  by  the  Mexican  Government  is 
shown  by  the  following  fact:  When  Don  Andres  Castil- 
lero,  a  senator  from  Mexico,  visited  Gen.  Sutter,  in  com- 
pany with  the  Californian  authorities,  they  offered  him, 
by  authority  and  in  the  name  of  the  Mexican  Govern- 
ment, either  the  sum  of  $100,000,  or  the  property  of  the 
mission  of  San  Jose,  with  the  live-stock  thereon,  and 
orders  for  cash  on  the  Custom-House,  in  exchange  for 
New  Helvetia.  Both  of  these  then  very  handsome  offers 
were  declined,  contrary  to  the  advice  of  the  late  Pi^rson 
B.  Reading  and  others,  for  the  reason  that,  by  giving  up 
that  point,  New  Helvetia,  considered  to  be,  and  called 
by  the  Mexicans  ^'La  Have  de  la  California" — kr^y  to 
California — the  American  citizens  and  other  immigrants 
would  have  lost  all  protection  which  Gen.  Sutter's  then 
cojisiderable  power  and  position  vouchsafed  to  them. 

Another  class  of  men,  without  any  pretext  but  that 
of  power  and  address,  commenced  stealing  his  horses 
and  butchering  his  cattle,  hogs,  and  sheep:  the  first  were 
taken  off  some  distance  and  exchanged  or  sold:  the 
meat  was  sold  to  the  immigrants.  Up  to  the  first  day 
of  January,  1852,  the  settlers,  under  the  pretence  of 
preemption  claims,  had  occupied  all  his  landb  capable 
of  settlement  or  appropriation ;  and  the  other  class  had 
stolen  all  his  horses,  mules,  cattle,  sheep,  and  hogs,  save 
a  small  portion  used  and  sold  by  Gen.  Sutter  himself. 
One  party  of  five  men  of  this  second  class,  during  the 
high  waters  of  1849-50,  when  his  cattle  were  partly  sur- 
rounded by  water  near  the  Sacramento  river,  on  his  lands 
in  Sutter  county,  killed  and  sold  the  beef  of  enough  of  them 
to  derive  $60,000;  after  which  they  left  for  "the  States." 


JOHN   A.    SUTTER.  21 

Having  beheld  his  power  decline  and  his  riches  take 
wings,  Gen.  Sutter  removed  to  the  west  bank  of  the 
Feather  river,  and  took  up  his  residence  on  Hock  Farm. 
Here,  in  the  midst  of  his  family,  which  had  recently  ar- 
rived from  Europe,  *he  led  the  quiet,  useful  life  of  a 
farmer,  in  the  county  which  bears  his  name.  He  has 
patiently  devoted  many  long  years  to  efforts  to  regain 
some  portion  of  that  opulence  which  his  energy  won,  and 
which  he  continued  to  enjoy,  until  the  event  occurred 
which  enriched  his  country  and  impoverished  him.  He 
is  now  at  Washington,  where  he  has  been  for  a  consider- 
able time,  engaged  in  pressing  his  claims  upon  the 
general  government,  for  remuneration  for  the  losses  and 
injuries  he  sustained  at  the  hands  of  the  immigrants 
of '49. 

Gen.  Sutter  is  strongly  attached  to  California,  and  as 
soon  as  his  business  duties  permit,  he  expects  to  return, 
and  pass,  in  the  peaceful  pursuits  of  husbandry,  amid  the 
scenes  of  his  former  prosperity,  the  sunset  of  his  life. 


JOSE  ANTONIO  DE  LA  GUERRA. 

^Y  ^;l.FI\ED    JlOBINSON.* 


DON  Jose  Antonio  de  la  Guerra  y  Noriega  was  born  in 
Fo vales,  in  the  province  of  Santander,  Spain,  A.  D. 
1776.  He  emigrated  to  Mexico  in  1778,  where,  soon 
after  his  arrival,  he  entered  the  mercantile  house  of  his 
uncle,  Don  Pedro  Noriega,  a  wealthy  gentleman  residing 
in  the  capital,- with  the  intention  of  becoming  a  merchant; 
but  finding  the  business  unsuited  to  his  taste,  and  being 
ambitious  of  distinction,  and  desirous  of  serving  his 
country  and  sovereign,  he  obtained,  in  1798,  the  appoint- 
ment of  cadet  in  the  Royal  Army.  In  1800,  he  was 
promoted  ensign  to  the  company  then  stationed  at  Mon- 
terey, Upper  California,  where  he  arrived  the  following 
year.  In  1804,  he  married  the  daughter  of  Don  Raim un- 
do Carillo,  Commandante  of  the  Presidio  of  Santa  Bar- 
bara. In  1806,  he  was  again  promoted,  and  received  the 
commission  of  lieutenant  in  the  company  stationed  at 
Santa  Barbara.  In  1810,  he  was  named  ^'  Habitado  Gen- 
eral" of  both  Upper  and  Lower  California,  and  imme- 
diately embarked  with  his  family  for  San  Bias,  on  his 
way  to  the  city  of  Mexico.  On  his  landing,  he  was 
taken  prisoner  by  the  curate,  Mercado,  a  partisan  of  Hi- 
dalgo in  the  revolution  of  that  time,  and  carried  to  Istlan, 
where  he  fortunately  escaped  from  the  cruel  assassination 
of  his  fellow-prisoners. 

The  revolution  of  Hidalgo  having  deprived  him  of  his 
office,  he  remained  some  time  in  Tepic,  where  he  served 

*  For  forty-one  years  a  resident  of  California. 


24  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

as  Ayudante  Mayor  in  the  army  there  stationed,  much  to 
the  satisfaction  of  the  government.  In  1811,  he  return- 
ed with  his  family  to  California.  For  several  years 
thereafter  he  held  command  of  the  troops  quartered  at  San 
Diego. 

In  1817,  he  was  promoted  captain  and  commandante 
of  the  company  stationed  at  Santa  Barbara.  Thither,  in 
that  year,  he  repaired  with  his  family.  In  1819,  he 
again  went  to  Mexico  as  Habitado  General.  After  a 
short  official  service,  the  revolution  of  1821  caused  him 
to  return  to  California. 

Upon  his  return,  he  forwarded  to  the  Mexican  Repub- 
lican government  his  resignation.  It  was  not  accepted. 
The  President,  Guadaloupe  Victoria,  feeling  the  great 
need  for  his  services,  continued  him  in  the  command  at 
Santa  Barbara. 

In  1828,  he  was  named  Diputado  to  the  General  Con- 
gress of  Mexico,  but  did  not  fill  the  office,  in  consequence 
of  his  seat  having  been  already  taken  and  occupied  by 
the  ^'  Suplente,"  Don  Gervasio  Arguello.  He  returned  to 
California  the  following  year,  in  a  vessel  which  he  pur- 
chased and  loaded  with  an  assorted  cargo. 

He  embarked  with  him  as  passengers,  Abel  Stearns, 
Sherman  Peck,  and  a  Scot  named  Kinloch.  Mr.  Stearns' 
visit  to  California  was  to  receive  a  large  grant  of  land 
which  his  partner  had  obtained  from  the  Mexican  govern- 
ment, and  to  make  arrangements  for  opening  the  same  to 
American  colonization. 

It  was  in  July,  1829,  when  they  landed  at  Monterey. 
Their  arrival  caused  considerable  commotion  and  excite- 
.ment  among  the  Spanish  population  which,  at  that  time, 
/inhabited  the  little  town.  After  passing  a  few  days  of 
sfeasting  and  enjoyment  among  his  friends  and  old  com- 
/panions,  Don  Jose  took  leave  of  them  and  started  over- 
land for  San  Francisco,  (Yerba  Buena).  He  dispatched 
his  vessel  to  meet  him  at  the  last  named  place.  On  his 
route,  he  was  received  at  the  different  missions  at  which 
he  tarried  with  all  the  respect  and  attention  due  his  rank, 
by  the  ringing  of  bells  and  firing  of  guns.  In  conse- 
quence of  his  great  intimacy  and  friendship  with  the  old 


JOSE    ANTONIO    DE   LE    GUERRA.  25 

Fathers  then  at  the  head  of  the  missionary  establishments, 
he  was  enabled  to  negotiate  very  im.portant  and  satisfac- 
tory sales,  and  soon  disposed  of  his  entire  cargo. 

On  reaching  San  Francisco  he  found  his  vessel  awaiting 
him.  He  immediately  discharged  his  merchandise  and 
set  sail  for  Santa  Barbara.  His  vessel  was  stranded  in 
attempting  to  enter  the  narrow  inlet  near  that  port,  but 
all  on  board  were  saved  and  reached  their  destination. 

From  that  time,  Don  Joae  lived  almost  entirely  at  home 
in  the  midst  of  his  family,  devoting  himself  to  their  wel- 
fare and  happiness.  He  took  no  active  part  in  the  political 
troubles  and  frequent  revolutions  of  his  country,  except 
as  a  counsellor  and  mediator,  in  which  capacity,  from  his 
great  reputation  as  a  man  of  unspotted  integrity,  patriot- 
ism, humanity  and  wealth,  he  wielded  immense  influence 
in  California. 

All  the  people  of  Santa  Barbara  looked  up  to  him  as 
the  patriarch  of  their  little  community.  On  every  emer- 
gency, to  him  they  resorted  for  advice  and  succor. 
Oftentimes,  during  the  periodical  visitation  of  earthquakes 
in  that  region,  men  and  women,  with  their  children, 
would  encamp  on  the  square  of  ground  upon  which  stood 
his  noble  mansion,  and  there  remain  until  their  fears 
subsided,  subsisting  the  while  on  his  hospitality  and 
generosity.  It  seemed  as  if  they  considered  his  person 
endowed  with  supernatural  grace.  To  their  simple  minds 
his  presence  was  a  sufiicient  guaranty  for  their  protection. 

The  children  of  the  little  settlement  were  taught  to 
revere  him.  As  they  passed  the  door  of  his  dwelling 
they  would  remove  their  hats  and  give  the  customary 
obeisance,  in  the  same  manner  as  they  did  when  passing 
the  entrance  to  their  religious  sanctuaries. 

Don  Jose's  family  was  extensive,  and  at  his  death, 
which  occurred  in  February,  1858,  he  left  behind  him 
over  one  hundred  descendants. 

Several  of  his  sons  made  themselves  conspicuous  in 
the  history  of  California  under  the  Mexican  dynasty. 
Since  its  annexation  to  the  United  States,  Don  Pablo  de 
la  Guerra  and  Don  Antonio  Maria  de  la  Guerra  have 
represented   their   county   in   the    State    Senate.       The 


26  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

tbriiicr  is  District  Judge  of  the  Judicial  District  compris- 
ing Santa  Barbara  and  San  Luis  Obispo  counties.  The 
daughters  of  the  old  gentleman  were  all  married  to  for- 
eigners. The  eldest  was  the  wife  of  Wm.  E.  P.  Hartwell, 
once  a  celebrated  merchant  and  connected  with  the  house 
of  John  Beggs  &  Co.,  of  Lima,  when  considerable  traffic 
was  carried  on  in  the  country  in  the  purchase  of  hides 
imd  tallow.  The  second  daughter  espoused  Don  Manuel 
Jiineno,  who,  at  the  time  of  the  surrender  of  the  Mexican 
power,  was  secretary  to  the  Governor  then  commanding 
in  California.  She  afterwards  married  Dr.  James  L.  Ord, 
brother  of  Major  General  Ord,  of  the  U.  S.  Army.  The 
third  married  Alfred  Robinson,  of  Boston,  and  the  young- 
est married,  first,  Don  Cesareo  Laitillade,  after  whose  death 
she  became  the  wife  of  Don  Caspar  Oreiia — both  of  her 
husbands  being  natives  of  Spain. 

Don  Jose's  residence  was  invariably  resorted  to  by 
strangers  w^ho  visited  California  in  those  early  days,  when 
the  name  of  the  now  prosperous  and  powerful  State  was 
seldom  heard  spoken  beyond  her  own  limits.  The  excel- 
lencies of  his  table,  and  the  noble  hospitality  which  he 
extended  to  his  numerous  guests,  are  yet  fondly  remem- 
bered by  the  few  survivors  who  partook  of  his  bounty. 

Doiia  M.  Antonia,  his  wife,  added  to  the  charms  of  his 
establishment,  and  her  ladylike  manners  and  amiability 
of  character  were  admired  by  all.  An  American  lady 
who  visited  California  in  1832,  in  speaking  of  the  many 
good  qualities  of  Dona  Maria  Antonia,  observed  that 
there  were  two  things  supremely  exquisite  in  California 
— one  of  which  was  the  grape,  and  the  other  the  lady  of 
Don  Jos^  de  la  Guerra  y  Noriega. 

At  times  when  the  political  disturbances  which  agi- 
tated the  country  were  most  annoying,  Don  Jose  would 
frequently  exclaim:  "  Cuando  vendran  los  Americanos  para 
tomar  posesion  de  este  pais? — When  will  the  Americans 
come  to  take  possession  of  this  country?"  He  had  an 
extraordinary  aversion  to  the  Mexican  government,  and 
was  ready  to  welcome  any  change  which  promised  to  put 
an  end  to  the  repeated  political  convulsions  harassing 
the  people  and  ruining  the  country.     Therefore,  when 


JOSE   ANTONIO   BE   LA   GUERRA.  27 

war  commenced  between  the  United  States  and  Mexico, 
his  ardent  love  of  permanent  peace,  order  and  prosperity 
moved  him  to  call  down  the  blessings  of  heaven  upon  the 
American  arms,  whose  success  he  predicted.  He  lived  to 
see  the  issue  of  that  great  conflict,  and  its  happy  effects 
upon  the  interests  and  prosperity  of  his  adopted  land. 
It  may  be  said  of  him,  truthfully,  paradoxical  as  the 
expression  may  seem,  that  he  w^as  a  man  of  true  patriot- 
ism, yet  beheld  his  country  conquered  without  regret. 
When  the  American  flag  was  unfurled  over  his  own  home, 
he  greeted  the  triumphant  banner  as  the  symbol  of  justice 
and  peace. 

At  his  death,  the  whole  town  turned  out  to  do  homage 
to  his  remains,  which  were  followed  to  the  grave  by  the 
largest  funeral  procession  that  had  ever  been  seen  in 
Santa  Barbara.  Many  an  old  veteran,  companion  of  his 
youth,  was  seen,  whose  cheeks  were  moistened  wdth  tears 
of  regret,  and  whose  feeble  gait  indicated  that  he,  too, 
would  soon  be  laid  by  the  side  of  the  virtuous  and  up- 
right old  pioneer. 


PIERSON  B.  READING 


This  noble  iDioneer  died  on  Ms  farm  in  Shasta  County,  Cali- 
fornia, in  May,  1868.  The  sad  announcement  of  his  death  was 
heard  with  profound  regret  throughout  the  State.  In  San  Fran- 
cisco, the  Society  of  California  Pioneers,  at  its  monthly  meeting  in 
June,  1868,  appointed  PmLip  A.  Roach,  Joseph  W.  Winaxs,  Lewis 
CuNxiNGHAM,  ARCHIBALD  H.  GiLLESPiE  and  Jacob  R.  Sxyder,  a  com- 
mittee to  prepare  resolutions  in  respect  to  the  memory  of  the 
deceased.  This  committee,  in  the  discharge  of  their  duty,  made 
commendable  effoiis  to  obtain  from  every  available  source,  infor- 
mation concerning  the  life  and  services  of  the  dead  pioneer.  It  is 
matter  for  deep  regret  that  the  labors  of  the  committee  were  not 
followed  by  gTeater  success. 

The  Editor,  knowing  the  energetic  exertions  made  by  the 
committee,  concluded  it  would  be  futile  to  endeavor  to  procure  any 
further  infoimation  in  regard  to  ]\L\jor  Reading's  career  than  that 
given  by  them  in  their  report,  which  is  on  file  in  the  office  of  the 
Society.  He  therefore  reproduces,  in  a  permanent  form,  this  brief 
record  of  a  life, 

"Precious  in  the  memorial  of  the  jusf 


#bituarH  of  §xmm  §*  ffaflmg. 


THE  undersigned,  Committee  appointed  by  the  Society 
of  California  Pioneers,  at  its  regular  monthly  meet- 
ing of  June,  1868,  to  prepare  suitable  resolutions  to  the 
memory  of  Pierson  B.  Reading,  lately  deceased,  beg  leave 
to  ask  attention  to  the  narrative  they  have  endeavored  to 
prepare  to  the  best  of  their  ability,  in  the  discharge  of 
the  sad  duty  confided  to  their  friendship. 

The  various  works  which  at  times  have  been  publish- 
ed upon  California  have  been  carefully  examined  by  this 


30  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Committee  in  the  discharge  of  its  sad  task,  and  the  result 
has  been  attended  with  a  sincere  regret  that,  in  respect  to 
the  deceased,  as  also  in  regard  to  many  who  have  preced- 
ed him  to  regions  beyond  the  tomb,  scarcely  a  record  of 
events  in  which  they  so  actively  participated  can  now  be 
found. 

The  Committee  have  endeavored  to  obtain  from  parties 
now  living,  who  crossed  the  plains  at  the  same  time  as  the 
deceased,  and  of  those  who  participated  in  the  events 
which  induced  the  settlement  of  our  people  in  this  region, 
and  led  to  its  acquisition  by  our  government,  a  knowledge 
of  the  incidents  which  would  prove  of  interest  to  our  fel- 
low-members, and  be  worthy  of  record  for  the  future 
compiler  of  the  annals  of  our  times;  but  those  efforts,  we 
say  with  regret,  have  been  attended  with  trifling  success. 

The  reliable  details  which  are  now  presented,  were 
principally  furnished  by  the  Hon.  John  Bidwell,  Major 
Jacob  R.  Snyder,  and  Major  A.  H.  Gillespie,  gentlemen 
whose  intimate  social  relations  with  the  deceased  have 
enabled  them  to  bear  witness  to  the  noble  imj)ulses  of 
character  which  marked  his  intercourse  with  his  fellow- 
men. 

The  sad  intelligence  of  the  death  of  Major  Reading,  an- 
nounced by  telegraph,  elicited  from  various  journals  pub- 
lished in  this  State,  tributes  of  respect  to  his  memory ;  all 
united  in  mentioning  the  noble  qualities  which  in  an  em- 
inent degree  distinguished  his  mind  and  heart;  and  from 
those  sources,  in  addition  to  the  friendly  remembrances 
of  the  gentlemen  herein  mentioned,  may  be  compiled  the 
story  of  his  sojourn  among  us. 

PiERSON  B.  Reading  was  born  in  New  Jersey,  26th  of 
November,  1816,  and  died  at  his  ranch,  Buena  Ventura, 
in  Shasta  County,  on  the  29th  of  May,  1868,  aged  fifty- 
one  years  and  six  months.  For  about  a  quarter  of  a  century 
he  had  occupied  a  prominent  position  in  California.  In 
1843,  he  crossed  the  plains  in  company  with  the  late  Sam'l 
J.  Hensley,  and  some  twenty-five  others,  and  from  that 
period  was  thoroughly  identified  with  this  region  of  the 
Continent.  The  route  by  which  the  party  arrived  is 
thus  described  by  Hon.  J.  Bidwell: 


PIERSON    B.    READING.  31 

*'The  road  by  which  they  had  come,  had  never  to  my 
knowledge  been  visited  or  traversed  by  any  save  the  most 
savage  Indian  tribes;  namely,  from  Fort  Boise,  on  Snake 
river,  to  the  Sacramento  valley  via  the  upper  Sacramento 
to  Pitt  river.  The  hostility  as  well  as  courage  of  those 
savages  is  well  known ;  but  I  may  refer  to  the  conflicts 
with  them  of  Fremont  in  1846,  of  the  lamented  Captain 
Warner  in  1849,  and  of  Gen.  Crook  in  1867." 

In  1844,  Reading  entered  the  service  of  Gen  Sutter, 
and  was  at  the  Fort  when  Fremont  first  arrived  in  Cali- 
fornia, in  the  spring  of  that  year.  In  1845,  he  was  left 
in  sole  charge,  while  Sutter  marched  with  all  his  forces  to 
assist  Micheltorena  in  quelling  the  insurrection,  headed  by 
Castro  and  Alvarado.  The  former  had  shown  his  par- 
tiality for  Americans  by  granting  them  lands,  and  this 
led  to  the  espousal  of  his  cause  by  our  people.  Reading, 
in  1846,  had  received  a  grant  in  what  is  now  known  as 
Shasta  County.  Later  in  1845  he  visited,  on  a  hunting 
and  trapping  expedition,  nearly  all  the  northern  part  of 
California,  the  western  part  of  Nevada,  as  also  Southern 
Oregon.  He  afterwards  extensively  engaged  in  trapping 
— the  seasons  of  1845  and  '46 — on  the  lower  Sacramento 
and  San  Joaquin  rivers.  In  all  these  dangerous  expedi- 
tions, his  intelligence,  bravery,  and  imposing  personal  ap- 
pearance exercised  over  the  hostile  Indians  a  command- 
ing influence,  that  protected  himself  and  party  not  only 
from  hostile  attack,  but  also  secured  their  friendly  aid  in 
all  his  undertakings. 

When  it  became  probable  that  war  would  be  declared 
against  Mexico,  Reading  enlisted  under  Fremont;  and  on 
the  organization  of  the  California  Battalion  by  Col.  Stock- 
ton, was  appointed  Paymaster,  with  the  rank  of  Major, 
and  served  until  the  close  of  the  war  in  this  country. 
After  its  termination,  Reading  returned  to  his  ranch  in 
Shasta,  which  he  made  his  permanent  home. 

In  the  events  preceding  and  accompanying  the  acqui- 
sition of  this  territory,  the  knowledge  and  experience  of 
Reading  were  of  great  advantage  to  the  government;  and 
that  the  flag  of  our  Union  instead  of  that  of  another  na- 
tion now  waves  over  it,  is  in  a  great  measure  due  to  those 


32  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC, 

early  pioneers  who  entered  California  before  the  existence 
of  gold  in  its  soil  was  even  surmised. 

In  1848,  Reading  was  among  the  first  to  visit  the 
scene  of  Marshall's  gold  discovery — Coloma — and  shortly 
after  engaged  extensively  in  prospecting  for  gold,  making 
discoveries  in  Shasta,  at  the  head  waters  of  the  Trinity, 
and  prospecting  that  river  until  he  became  satisfied  that 
the  gold  region  extended  to  the  Pacific  Ocean.  A  por- 
tion of  these  explorations  were  made  in  company  with 
Jacob  R.  Snyder.  A  large  number  of  Indians  were 
worked  with  great  success,  until  all  were  disabled  by 
sickness.  In  1849,  with  Hensley  and  Snyder,  Reading  en- 
gaged extensively  in  commercial  business  in  Sacramento, 
and  continued  in  the  firm  until  1850. 

In  the  fall  of  1849,  Major  Reading  fitted  out  an  expe- 
dition to  discover  the  bay  into  which  he  supposed  the 
Trinity  and  Klamath  rivers  must  empty.  The  bark  Jo- 
sephine, in  which  the  party  sailed,  was  driven  by  a  storm 
far  out  of  her  course  to  the  northwest  of  Vancouver's 
Island,  and  had  to  return.  Others  subsequently  acting 
on  the  idea,  discovered  and  called  the  bay  after  the 
world-renowned  traveler  Humboldt,  by  whose  name  it  is 
now  known. 

In  1850,  Major  Reading  visited  Washington,  to  settle 
his  accounts  as  paymaster  of  the  California  Battalion. 
The  disbursement  exceeded  $166,000  and  had  been  kept 
with  such  neatness  and  accuracy,  supported  by  vouchers, 
that  the  Auditor  complimented  them  as  being  the  best  of 
any  presented  during  the  war. 

While  in  the  States  on  this  occasion,  he  visited  his  old 
home,  Vicksburg,  where  in  1837,  he  had  succumbed  to  the 
crisis  which  caused  such  wide-spread  ruin  among  the 
merchants  of  the  Southwest.  His  object  was  to  pay  in 
gold  the  principal  and  interest  of  his  long  outstanding 
and  almost  forgotten  obligations.  This  he  did  to  the  ex- 
tent of  $60,000 — an  instance  of  commercial  integrity  of 
which  our  own  State  has  reason  to  be  proud. 

In  1851,  Major  Reading  was  the  candidate  of  the  Whig 
party  for  Governor  of  California,  which  exalted  position  he 
failed  to  obtain  only  by  a  few  votes.      Since  then  he  was 


PIERSON   B.    READING.  3B 

frequently  invited  to  become  a  candidate  for  political 
positions,  but  declined. 

For  many  years  previous  to  his  decease,  agriculture, 
with  a  view  of  developing  the  interest  of  the  State,  oc- 
cupied his  attention.  In  1856,  Major  Reading  married 
in  Washington,  Miss  Fanny  Washington,  who,  with  five 
children,  is  left  to  mourn  the  death  of  their  beloved  pro- 
tector. The  Committee  having,  to  the  best  of  their  abil- 
ity, presented  all  the  incidents  they  could  obtain  regard- 
ing the  life  of  their  late  friend  and  companion,  now  ask 
leave  to  present  appropriate  resolutions  of  respect  for  the 
consideration  of  the  Society. 

Whereas^  it  has  pleased  Divine  Providence  to  termin- 
ate the  earthly  career  of  our  friend  and  companion.  Pier- 
son  B.  Reading,  by  which  event  our  Society  has  sustain- 
ed an  irreparable  loss,  and  the  State  been  deprived  of  one 
of  its  valuable  citizens,  who  was  deservedly  regarded  by 
our  people  as  a  man  of  the  highest  worth  and  severest 
rectitude  of  character.    Be  it 

Resolved^  That  in  the  decease  of  Pierson  B.  Reading, 
frequently  a  chosen  officer  of  our  Society,  we  have  sus- 
tained a  bereavement,  whose  only  consolation  will  be 
found  in  the  remembrance  of  the  noble  traits  of  heart  and 
mind,  which  marked  his  intercourse  with  his  fellow  men^ 
Possessed  of  the  most  courteous  manners  ;  of  enlarged 
views;  and  of  a  highly  cultivated  mind,  united  with  pro- 
bity of  character,  and  the  most  dauntless  bravery,  he 
deserves  that  upon  the  tomb  containing  his  ashes  be 
inscribed  the  words  that  properly  typify  his  life — Read- 
ing, Tlie  Pioneer. 

Resolved^  That  the  report  of  the  Committee  be  pub- 
lished— that  this  preamble  and  resolution  be  engrossed, 
and  a  copy  sent  to  the  widow  of  our  deceased  friend  and 
companion,  over  whose  welfare  and  that  of  her  children, 
we  invoke  the  guardianship  of  our  merciful  Father. 
Philip  A.  Roach,  Lewis  Cunningham, 

Joseph  W.  Winans,  Arch'd  H.  Gillespie, 

Jacob  R.  Snyder. 
3 


l!^^^^^:i.€x^/^ ^ 


LELAND  STANFORD 


LELAND  Stanford,  eighth  Governor  of  California,  and 
President  of  the  Central  Pacific  Railroad  Company, 
was  born  in  the  County  of  Albany,  State  of  New  York, 
March  9th,  1824.  His  ancestors  were  English.  They 
settled  in  the  valley  of  the  Mohawk  about  the  beginning 
of  the  last  century,  and  for  several  generations  were 
classed  among  the  substantial  and  thrifty  farmers  of  that 
region.  His  father,  Josiah  Stanford,  was  a  prominent  citi- 
zen of  Albany  County,  where  he  lived  for  many  years, 
cultivating  and  improving  the  old,  homestead  farm,  called 
Elm  Grove,  on  the  stage  road  between  Albany  and  Sche- 
nectady. His  family  consisted  of  seven  sons,  of  whom 
Leland,  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was  the  fourth — and 
one  daughter  who  died  in  her  infancy.  Being  in  the 
prime  of  his  life  at  the  time  that  He  Witt  Clinton  had 
successfully  urged  upon  the  people  of  New  York  his  great 
project  of  canal  navigation  between  the  Hudson  river  and 
the  lakes,  the  mind  of  Mr.  Stanford  was  keenly  alive  to 
the  importance  of  the  enterprise,  and  he  watched  with 
absorbing  interest  the  completion,  in  1825,  of  the  exten- 
sive work.  This  was  the  beginning  of  that  great  system 
of  internal  improvements  which  has  made  the  State  of 
New  York  an  empire  within  itself. 

A  little  later  the  practicability  of  railroads  as  a  means 
of  expeditious  transit  was  freely  discussed,  but  not  until 
1829,  when  the  success  of  steam  locomotives  upon  the 
Liverpool  and  Manchester  road  was  established,  did  any 


36  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

project  of  the  kind  find  much  favor  among  business  men 
in  the  United  States.  About  this  period  a  scheme  was 
set  on  footj  and  a  charter  obtained  from  the  Legislature  of 
New  York,  to  build  a  railroad  from  Albany,  to  the  old 
Dutch  town  of  Schenectady.  The  project,  at  the  outset, 
had  but  few  friends  among  the  farmers  ;  but  Mr.  Stanford, 
satisfied  in  his  own  mind  that  the  lands  of  Elm  Grovt 
and  of  all  the  valley  would  be  doubled  in  value  by  the 
advent  of  the  road,  became  one  of  its  warmest  advocates, 
and  argued  its  advantages  with  all  the  vigor  of  which  he 
was  capable.  The  work  was  finally  commenced,  and  Mr. 
Stanford,  leaving  the  duties  of  the  farm  to  be  attended 
to  by  his.  elder  sons,  took  large  contracts  for  grading 
the  line,  and  pushed  them  forward  with  characteristic 
rapidity  and  success. 

During  this  time  Leland  was  attending  school  near 
his  father's  farm,  and  doubtless  watched,  in  the  intervals 
of  his  lessons,  the  progress  of  the,  to  him,  novel  work 
which  was  being  prosecuted  in  the  neighborhood.  He  lit- 
tle dreamed  in  those  youthful  days,  that  his  manhood 
would  be  devoted  to  a  kindred  enterprise,  the  magnitude 
of  which  would  attract  the  attention  of  the  civilized  world. 
Confined  in  his  boyhood's  experience  to  the  limits  of  his 
own  county,  the  shores  of  the  great  lakes,  but  a  few  hun- 
dred miles  away,  were  to  him  the  distant  West.  The 
country  between  the  Mississippi  and  the  Rocky  mountains, 
was  looked  upon  as  a  vast  unknown  region,  inhabited  only 
by  Indians,  while  the  unexplored  ranges  and  plains  beyond 
seemed  as  inaccessible  and  as  inhospitable  as  the  frozen 
solitudes  of  Siberia.  The  Erie  canal,  which  was  then 
floating  the  products  of  the  lake  shore  to  the  waiters  of 
the  Hudson,  had,  in  its  infancy,  been  looked  upon  with 
distrust  by  some  of  the  most  sagacious  business  men  of 
that  period  ;  and  yet,  ere  the  boys  of  that  day  had  matured 
into  manhood,  those  distant  and  solitary  plains  had  been 
explored,  the  ranges  of  mountains  had  been  pierced  and 
made  to  yield  hundreds  of  millions  of  precious  metals, 
and  a  new  empire  had  been  battled  for,  occupied  and  peo- 
pled, on  the  Pacific  coast  ;  while  the  wants  of  commerce 
had  demanded  and  secured  railroad  communication  be- 


LELAND   ST^TORD.  ST 

tween  the  two  oceans  that  make  the  Eastern  and  Western 
boundaries  "of  the  United  States. 

Until  the  age  of  twenty,  Leland's  time  was  divided 
between  his  studies  and  the  occupations  incident  to  a  farm 
life.  He  then  commenced  the  study  of  law,  and  in  1845, 
removed  to  the  city  of  Albany,  and  entered  the  office  of 
Wheaton,  Doolittle  &  Hadley,  prominent  members  of  the 
legal  profession  in  that  city.  Early  in  1848,  he  determ- 
ined to  seek  in  the  Western  country  a  desirable  location 
for  the  practice  of  law.  He  visited  various  localities  in 
the  vicinity  of  the  lakes,  and  finally  settled  at  Port  Wash- 
ington, in  the  State  of  Wisconsin.  Here  he  remained  for 
the  period  of  four  years,  and  while  here,  in  1850,  was 
married  to  Miss  Jane  Lathrop,  daughter  of  Dyer  Lathrop, 
a  merchant  of  Albany,  whose  family  had  been  among  the 
early  settlers  of  that  town.  Soon  after  Leland's  arrival 
at  Port  Washington  the  reported  discoveries  of  fabulous 
mineral  wealth  in  California  were  a  constant  theme  of  the 
newspapers  in  the  West,  and  the  eyes  of  half  the  young 
men  in  the  land,  of  all  trades  and  professions,  were  eagerly 
turned  towards  the  alluring  deposits  of  the  Pacific  slope. 
Five  of  his  brothers  had  arrived  upon  the  banks  of  the 
Sacramento,  and  were  successfully  engaged  in  mining  and 
in  trade.  They,  and  hundreds  of  others  of  his  friends, 
were  anxious  that  Leland  should  join  them ;  but  he  had 
selected  a  residence  in  the  growing  State  of  Wisconsin, 
and  his  temperament  w^as  not  so  sanguine  as  to  cause  him 
so  soon  to  give  up  the  comforts  of  a  permanent  home, 
which  he  was  just  beginning  to  enjoy. 

It  was  not  therefore  until  the  Spring  of  1852,  that  he 
came  to  the  determination  to  push  his  fortunes  in  the  new 
field  to  which  so  many  of  his  friends  had  been  attracted, 
and  where  so  niany  of  them  had  met  with  success.  He 
arrived  in  California,  July  12th,  1852,  and  at  once  proceed- 
ed to  the  interior,  being  determined  to  examine  into,  and 
to  engage  by  himself  in,  practical  mining.  He  tried  a 
number  of  locations  in  various  parts  of  the  State,  and  at 
length  settled  at  Michigan  Bluff,  on  the  American  river 
in  Placer  County.  With  his  mining  interests  at  this  point, 
and  the  mercantile  house  with  which  he  was  connected  in 


38  EEPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

company  with  his  brothers  at  Sacramento,  he  soon  fomid 
himself  possessed  of  a  rapidly  growing  and  lucrative  busi- 
ness. He  has  never  entirely  relinquished  his  mining  in- 
terests in  California,  although  for  some  years  they  have  re- 
ceived but  a  small  share  of  his  personal  attention. 

In  the  earlier  years  of  his  manhood,  Mr.  Stanford  was, 
by  instinct,  by  education,  and  by  association,  a  Whig. 
While  the  great  free  soil  movement  was  gathering  strength 
in  the  land,  he  became  strenuous  in  its  advocacy  and  earn- 
est in  its  support.  He  was  among  the  few  leading  spir- 
its who  formed  the  Republican  party  in  California,  and  by 
giving  freely  of  his  time  and  of  his  means,  he  made  his 
influence  felt  in  the  campaign  of  1856,  when  a  gallant 
fight  was  made  by  that  party,  against  fearful  odds,  in  the 
Golden  State.  In  Sacramento,  the  capital  of  the  State,  it 
was  in  those  days  considered  an  act  of  temerity  to  attend 
a  free  soil  meeting,  and  speakers  were  hooted  at,  pelted, 
and  driven  from  the  stand,  who  dared  to  utter  sentiments 
not  in  accordance  with  those  held  by  the  then  dominant 
party.  The  State,  from  its  organization,  had  been  under 
the  control  of  the  Southern  wing  of  the  democracy,  and  it 
was  up-hill  work  to  establish  a  new  political  party,  which 
if  successful  must  result  in  the  entire  overthrow  of  the 
one  in  power.  But  the  destinies  of  the  great  freedom-lov- 
ing organization  were  in  the  hands  of  men  who  were 
undaunted  by  defeat.  Without  losing  courage  by  the 
result  of  the  National  canvas  of  1856,  they  determined 
to  organize  for  the  State  election  in  1857.  At  this  time 
Mr.  Stanford  was  the  candidate  of  the  Republican  party 
for  the  office  of  State  Treasurer^  but  the  whole  ticket  was 
defeated.  In  1859,  he  was  nominated  for  Governor  and 
again  defeated.  In  1861,  the  Republicans,  confident  of 
their  strength,  determined  upon  a  vigorous  canvass.  Mr. 
Stanford  was  absent  in  Washington  during  the  summer, 
but  among  the  many  names  mentioned  for  the  nomination, 
his  was  most  prominent.  Soon  after  his  return,  the  Con- 
vention assembled  at  Sacramento,  and  upon  the  first  ballot 
he  received  the  nomination.  The  contest  that  followed 
was  the  most  exciting  one  the  State  had  yet  seen.  With 
two  other  candidates  in  the  field,  he  ran  nearly  six  thous- 


LELAND    STANFORD.  39 

and  votes  ahead  of  his  ticket,  and  was  elected  by  a  popu- 
lar vote  nearly  equal  to  that  of  his  two  opponents  com- 
bined.    The  result  was  as  follows,  in  a  vote  of  119,730  : 

Stanford,  Republican,  received  66,036  ; 

Conness,  Douglas  Democrat,  received  30,944  ; 

McConnell,  Administration  Democrat,  received  32,750. 

Having  thus  been  called  upon  as  a  political  candidate 
to  traverse  the  State  twice,  without  a  hope  of  being  elected, 
he  was  now  rewarded,  after  a  third  most  thorough  and 
exhausting  canvass,  by  a  success  undoubtedly  beyond  his 
expectations.  In  January,  1862,  the  Governor  was  in- 
augurated at  Sacramento,  and  assumed  the  duties  of  his 
office  at  a  critical  period  in  State  as  well  as  national  affairs. 
The  country  w^as  in  the  midst  of  an  internal  war,  the 
magnitude  of  which  startled  the  people  and  paralyzed  the 
various  industries  of  the  land.  There  had  been  few 
daring  enough  to  predict  its  inception — none  far-seeing 
enough  to  foretell  how  it  would  end.  The  mutterings  of 
the  impending  conflict  had  been  for  a  long  time  borne 
upon  every  breeze,  and  the  shock  of  battle  that  followed 
the  bursting  storm  was  earnest  and  deadly.  The  election 
in  California,  the  previous  fall,  had  been  watched  with 
peculiar  interest  by  both  the  contending  parties.  The 
Secessionists  of  the  South  were  sanguine  that  the  democ- 
racy could  not  be  driven  from  the  stronghold  they  had 
occupied  so  long  ;  while  the  loyal  men  of  the  North,  hop- 
ing almost  against  hope  itself,  were  earnest  in  their  aspir- 
ations that  California  might  declare  herself  on  the  side 
of  justice  and  of  right.  Mr.  Stanford  had  spent  much 
time  subsequent  to  Mr.  Lincoln's  inauguration  at  the  na- 
tional Capital,  and  had  been  cordially  received  as  a  leading 
and  representative  republican  of  the  Pacific  Coast.  Among 
the  few  who  visited  the  President  without  seeking  office 
at  his  hands,  he  very  soon  won  Mr.  Lincoln's  regard,  and 
became  his  principal  adviser  in  the  difficult  task  of  distrib- 
uting the  official  patronage  in  California.  His  nomina- 
tion to  the  office  of  Governor  and  his  triumphant  election, 
were  hailed  therefore  with  delight  by  all  who  were  connect- 
ed with  the  National  Republican  administration. 

To  the  deplorable  condition  of  the  nation  at  the  com- 


40  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

mencement  of  the  year  1862,  was  added  a  local  calamity 
which  devastated  the  fairest  portions  of  California.  A 
flood  unexampled  in  its  destructiveness  was,  on  the  very 
day  of  the  inauguration  of  the  new  Governor,  sweeping 
through  the  streets  of  Sacramento  and  hurrying  its  dread 
volume  of  waters  over  a  territory  hundreds  of  miles  in 
extent.  Lives  were  lost,  houses  were  submerged,  farms 
were  destroyed,  roads  and  bridges  were  carried  away,  till 
it  seemed  as  if  the  very  genius  of  disaster  had  taken  within 
its  baneful  grasp  the  destinies  of  the  State.  The  beauti- 
ful homes  and  gardens  of  the  Capital  city  were  desolated 
in  a  day.  The  Governor  and  the  Legislature  were  obliged 
to  go  to  and  from  the  place  of  the  inaugural  ceremonies  in 
boats.  The  latter  immediately  resolved  upon  a  removal  to 
San  Francisco,  and  the  Governor  was  obliged  to  transfer 
his  office  to  the  same  place. 

It  was  under  adverse  circumstances  such  as  these,  that 
the  first  Republican  administration  of  California  entered 
upon  its  career,  with  Governor  Stanford  at  its  head.  He 
had,  however,  been  long  known  throughout  the  State  as  a 
successful  merchant  and  miner,  and  it  was  believed  that 
he  would  exhibit  in  the  management  of  public  affairs  the 
same  sound  sense  he  had  brought  to  bear  upon  his  private 
business.  Nor  were  the  people  who  elected  him  deceived 
in  their  choice.  He  gave  his  entire  attention  to  the  new 
duties  that  devolved  upon  him  ;  he  maintained  frequent 
and  unreserved  correspondence  with  the  heads  of  all  the 
Departments  at  Washington  ;  thus  holding  California  in 
close  and  sympathetic  relations  with  the  central  govern- 
ment. In  this  way,  with  the  aid  of  a  constituency  actu- 
ated by  the  highest  and  noblest  patriotism,  the  Governor 
had  the  proud  satisfaction  of  seeing  California  occupy  a 
front  rank  among  the  sisterhood  of  loyal  States.  At  the 
close  of  his  administration,  the  Legislature  bestowed  up- 
on him  the  unusual  compliment  of  a  concurrent  resolu- 
tion, passed  by  a  unanimous  vote  of  all  parties,  in  which 
it  was  ^^  Resolved  by  the  Assembly,  the  Senate  concurring 
That  the  thanks  of  the  people  of  California  are  merited, 
and  are  hereby  tendered  to  Leland  Stanford,  for  the  able, 
upright,  and  faithful  manner  in  which  he  has  discharged 


LELAND    STANFORD.  41 

the  duties  of  Governor  of  the  State  of  California,  for  the 
past  two  years." 

Among  the  most  prominent  events  of  Governor  Stan- 
ford's administration,  may  be  ranked  the  commencement 
of  the  great  continental  thoroughfare  which  connects  the 
Pacific  coast  with  the  vast  net-work  of  rail  roads  that 
bind  together  and  cement  in  commercial  bonds  the  Atlan- 
tic States.  The  construction  of  this  important  work  had 
for  years  been  a  favorite  scheme  in  the  Governor's  mind. 
He  was  convinced  of  the  practicability  of  the  ^enterprise, 
and  it  was  his  greatest  desire  that  California  should  take 
the  initiative  steps  to  secure  to  the  Nation  the  magnifi- 
cent results  of  the  noble  work.  The  general  idea  of  a 
railroad  across  the  continent  cannot  be  looked  upon  as 
original  with  any  one  person  in  the  land.  The  project 
was  the  result  of  a  national  sentiment  rather  than  of  in- 
dividual sagacity.  Hundreds  of  persons  had,  during  the 
previous  twenty  years,  suggested  as  many  different  plans 
for  a  Pacific  railroad  ;  but  nothing  of  a  practical  nature 
was  ever  consummated,  because  no  united  and  persistent 
effort  was  brought  to  bear  upon  the  project.  From  ses- 
sion to  session.  Congress  had  been  beseiged  by  parties  with 
visionary  schemes  that  looked  to  national  aid,  and  to  that 
alone,  to  build  the  entire  road  ;  but  not  until  1861  and 
1862  was  any  feasible  and  definite  plan  presented  upon 
which  to  base  legislative  action.  During  these  years,  a 
few  wealthy  men  of  Sacramento,  the  capital  of  California, 
resolved  to  take  the  matter  in  hand,  and  to  furnish  all  the 
money  required  to  make  the  necessary  preliminary  survey. 
They  were  all  men  of  first  rate  business  capacity,  who 
had  been  subject  to  the  vicissitudes  of  mercantile  life  in 
California,  who  had  witnessed  its  fires  and  floods,  and 
who  had  finally  realized  comfortable  fortunes  for  them- 
selves and  families.  As  business  men,  they  examined  into 
and  considered  this  gigantic  scheme  from  a  business  point 
of  view  ;  and  being  themselves  satisfied  of  its  ultimate 
success,  they  determined  to  show  their  confidence  by 
risking  their  entire  fortunes  in  the  enterprise. 

Leland  Stanford,  and  his  associates,  Messrs.  Crocker, 
Huntington,  and  Hopkins,  thus  enjoy  the  proud  preemi- 


42  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

nence  of  being  the  first  parties  in  the  United  States  to 
give  this  project  to  the  country,  in  a  tangible  shape. 
They  employed  at  their  own  expense  the  best  engineering 
talent  that  could  be  procured,  to  make  surveys  over  the 
various  passes  of  the  Sierra  Nevada  mountains.  This  frown- 
ing range  of  snow-capped  summits  had  been  considered 
an  insurmountable  barrier  to  the  passage  of  a  locomo- 
tive. Its  storms  to  the  emigrant,  like  the  cyclone  to  the 
mariner,  were  looked  upon  with  unmitigated  dread  ;  and 
the  w^inter  winds  that  swept  through  its  deep  gorges,  and 
whistled  among  its  peaks,  seemed  laden  with  a  bold  defi- 
ance that  forbade  the  encroachments  of  engineering  skill. 
Reaching,  upon  its  lowest  pass,  an  elevation  of  seven 
thousand  feet,  within  a  distance  of  less  than  eighty  miles, 
the  idea  of  a  locomotive,  climbing  hour  after  hour  with 
heavy  trains  the  steep  ascent,  could  only  be  entertained 
by  earnest,  sanguine,  and  practical  minds.  The  summit 
once  attained,  the  descent  upon  the  eastern  slope  was 
scarcely  less  difficult,  to  the  clesert  plain  beyond.  Here 
was  a  large  scope  of  barren  country,  without  wood  and 
almost  without  water,  hundreds  of  miles  in  extent,  with 
no  population  to  welcome  the  approach  of  the  iron  track. 
With  difficulties  of  such  a  character  staring  them  in 
the  face,  these  Sacramentans,  few  in  number,  but  mighty 
in  faith,  with  Leland  Stanford  at  their  head,  came  to  the 
determination  to  commence  the  work.  A  practical  route 
had  been  found  to  and  over  the  summit,  with  no  grade 
exceeding  one  hundred  and  five  feet  to  the  mile.  Fre- 
quent meetings  of  conference  were  held  at  the  residences 
of  Mr.  Stanford  and  Mr.  Huntington,  and  a  bill  was  at 
length  drafted  by  them  which  formed  the  basis  of,  and 
was  in  a  great  measure  identical  with,  the  Pacific  Railroad 
Act,  which  finally  passed  through  Congress,  and  under 
which  nearly  two  thousand  miles  of  railroad  have  since 
been  constructed. 

Much  as  these  few  energetic  men  had  accomplished  in 
the  incipient  stages  of  this  great  enterprise,  they  found 
that  difficulties  multiplied  when  they  came  to  the  practi- 
cal workings  of  their  project.  No  aid  could  be  obtained 
from  Congress,  until  forty  miles  of  road  and  telegraph 


LELAND   STANFORD.  43 

were  completed  and  in  good  working  condition.  To  grade 
this  forty  miles,  to  bridge  the  wide  and  rapid  American 
River,  to  purchase  iron  for  the  track,  and  rolling  stock 
for  its  equipment,  was  no  easy  task  to  be  accomplished  by 
half  a  dozen  citizens  of  a  small  inland  city  of  California. 
They  had  unlimited  faith,  however,  in  the  ultimate  success 
of  their  undertaking,  and  were  willing  to  pledge  all  they 
were  worth  to  ensure  its  success.  In  1861,  a  charter  was 
obtained  from  the  Legislature  of  California,  under  which 
a  meeting  of  stockholders  was  at  once  held.  Leland 
Stanford  was  elected  President  of  the  Corporation,  and 
C.  P.  Huntington,  Yice  President;  positions  which  they 
have  both  held  from  that  time  to  the  present.  On  the 
22d  day  of  February,  1863,  Governor  Stanford,  in  the 
presence  of  the  State  Legislature  and  of  a  large  concourse 
of  citizens,  shovelled  the  first  earth,  and  commenced  the 
Pacific  Railroad  grade.*  From  that  day,  work  upon  the 
line  has  not  been  delayed  for  a  single  week.  Obstacles 
of  a  serious  character  were  constantly  met,  but  were  as 
speedily  surmounted.  The  war  for  the  preservation  of 
the  Union  was  at  its  height.  The  fate  of  the  Nation  was 
hanging  in  a  balance  which  occasional  successes,  and  oc- 
casional reverses,  kept  constantly  swinging  to  and  fro. 
The  national  finances  were  disarranged,  the  national  credit 
was  at  a  low  ebb,  and  capitalists  throughout  the  country 
were  exceedingly  distrustful  of  untried  schemes.  Rival 
enterprises,  or  those  that  were  considered  rival,  met  the 
projectors  of  this  national  work  in  the  money  markets  to 
which  they  applied,  and  sought  to  neutralize  their  efforts 
to  obtain  capital  by  misrepresenting  their  intentions,  and 
by  discrediting  their  integrity. 

Toll  roads  over  the  Sierras,  the  owners  of  which  the 
Washoe  traffic  had  converted  into  millionaires,  were  ar- 
rayed against  the  new  and  more  expeditious  route,  which 
would,  when  completed,  destroy  the  profits  of  the  old  ones. 
Strange  as  it  may  appear,  in  a  State  the  very  existence 
of  which  would  seem  to  depend  upon  a  Pacific  Railway,  a 

*In  liis  address,  upon  this  occasion,  Governor  Stanford  predicted  that  the  Pa- 
cific Raiboad  would  be  completed  in  1870.  The  result  has  more  than  verified 
his  prediction. 


44  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

violent,  unscrupulous,  and  unyielding  anti-railroad  cabal 
was  evolved  from  the  various  opposing  interests  that  were 
at  this  time  in  the  full  tide  of  success.  Large  amounts 
of  money  were  raised  to  litigate  the  Central  Pacific 
Company  at  every  stage  of  their  progress,  and  to  foHow 
them  with  annoying  law  suits  from  court  to  court.  These 
embarrassments  only  seemed  to  increase  the  ardor  of  those 
who  had  determined  to  push  the  work.  The  vice-presi- 
dent of  the  company,  Mr.  Huntington,  established  him- 
self in  N^ew  York,  as  the  financial  and  purchasing  agent  of 
the  enterprise,  and  was  early  recognized  as  one  of  the 
most  prominent  and  successful  financiers  of  that  great 
moneyed  centre.  The  amount  of  iron,  rolling  stock,  and 
material  necessary  to  be  purchased,  and  to  be  kept  con- 
stantly on  the  way,  was  immense ;  but  although  it  had  to 
traverse  more  than  half  the  length  of  two  oceans,  the  cal- 
culations of  its  departure  from  New  York  and  of  its  arrival 
at  the  wharves  of  Sacramento,  were  careful  and  exact, 
and  the  supply  never  failed  to  be  at  hand  when  wanted 
upon  the  road. 

While  the  public  were  apathetic,  or  at  best  indifferent, 
the  managers  of  the  work  at  the  California  end  were  ac- 
tive and  on  the  alert.  Always  keeping  within  the  require- 
ments of  the  Act  of  Congress,  as  to  grades  and  curves, 
and  as  to  the  general  character  of  the  work,  they  never- 
theless found  at  the  termination  of  each  year  a  greater 
amount  of  roadway  completed  than  was  stipulated  by 
government.  On  the  25th  day  of  N^ov ember,  1867,  the 
Summit  tunnel  was  opened,  and  work  was  in  a  good  state 
of  progress  upon  a  dozen  other  tunnels  between  that 
point  and  the  Truckee  river.  Meanwhile,  a  sufficient 
quantity  of  iron,  locomotives  and  cars,  for  more  than  forty 
miles  of  road,  had  actually  been  hauled  by  teams  over  a 
portion  of  the  mountains,  so  that  in  the  spring  of  1868, 
the  Central  Pacific  Company  were  enabled  to  lay  track 
from  the  East  and  from  the  West,  until  a  connection  was 
made  near  the  Summit  on  the  17th  of  June  of  that  year. 
When,  a  year  or  two  previous,  the  laying  of  a  mile  of 
track  per  day  was  promised,  railroad  men  in  all  parts  of 
the  world  wondered  at  the  extravagant  proposition ;  yet 


LELAND    STANFORD.  45 

two  and  three  miles  became  an  ordinary  day's  work  dur- 
ing 1868  and  1869,  and  upon  one  occasion  a  distance  of 
ten  and  a  quarter  miles  of  track  were  laid  in  one  day 
between  dawn  and  dark.  Thus  the  great  work  progressed 
without  cessation,  and  at  a  rate  of  progress  that,  in  its  ear- 
lier days,  would  have  been  counted  as  marvelous.  Early 
in  1869  the  through  line  was  completed,  and  a  connection 
made  with  the  Union  Pacific  road. 

We  have  dwelt  upon  this  great  enterprise  in  connec- 
tion with  our  sketch  of  Governor  Stanford,  because  he 
has  been  identified  with  it  from  its  earliest  inception  to 
the  present  time.  Elected  from  the  first  as  its  highest 
executive  officer,  he  has  attended  faithfully  to  its  inter- 
ests, and  has  given  to  the  project  some  of  the  best  years 
of  his  life.  Now  that  the  w^ork  is  accomplished,  he  is 
directing  his  attention  to  similar  enterprises  of  less  mag- 
nitude perhaps,  but  still  important  in  the  development 
of  the  resources  of  his  adopted  State. 

Governor  Stanford,  in  his  public  and  private  life, 
may  truly  be  regarded  as  one  of  California's  representative 
men.  Arriving  upon  these  shores  at  an  early  period,  with 
but  moderate  means  at  his  command,  he  at  once  assumed 
a  prominent  position  among  the  merchants  and  business 
men  of  the  new  State.  Without  those  brilliant  attain- 
ments which  are  sometimes  the  result  of  a  thorough  col- 
legiate education,  he  has  at  his  command  a  generous  fund 
of  useful  knowledge ;  and  he  has  rarely  been  at  fault  in 
his  judgement  of  others,  or  in  his  estimate  of  important 
measures,  whether  connected  with  his  official,  or  his 
business  career.  Never  backward  in  asserting  his  prin- 
ciples, he  is  3'et  willing  to  defer  to  the  opinions  of  others; 
and  in  his  intercourse  with  men,  his  object  seems  to  be 
to  gain  information  upon  all  points  at  issue. 

Physically,  he  is  larger  than  the  average  of  men. 
Having  been  inured  to  labor  in  the  open  air  in  his  boy- 
hood, and  having  avoided,  during  his  whole  life,  excesses 
of  all  kinds,  he  is  at  the  present  time  capable  of  bearing 
an  amount  of  bodily  fatigue,  and  of  travel  without  rest, 
that  few  men  could  endure.  With  a  retentive  memor}^ 
for  facts  and  details,  a  keen  perception  of  affairs,  and 


46  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

quick  reasoning  powers,  he  yet  arrives  at  conclusions  by 
patient  mental  labor.  Not  easily  excited,  nor  over  san- 
guine in  temperament,  he  readily  grasps  large  schemes, 
and  usually  works  out  his  plans  to  a  successful  consumma- 
tion. His  favorite  theory  in  judging  of  others  is,  that  all 
men  are  possessed  of  good  qualities,  and  that  our  esti- 
mate of  individuals  whom  w^e  do  not  thoroughly  know, 
is  generally  below  the  standard  which  their  merits  de- 
serve. In  consequence  of  his  firm  belief  in  this  theory, 
he  is  charitable  towards  the  faults  of  others — never  har- 
boring revengeful  feelings,  and  never  indulging  in  long- 
time resentments.  In  considering  matters  relating  ex- 
clusively to  business,  he  is  reticent  to  a  degree ;  but  he 
is  at  all  times  a  conscientious  and  willing  listener. 
Where  some  men  strive  by  labored  argument  to  convince, 
he  strives  to  convince  by  the  ceaseless  assiduity  with 
which  he  labors  to  accomplish  results.  In  social  life,  he 
is  unreserved  in  his  conversation,  earnest  in  his  hospital- 
ity, warm  in  his  friendship,  and  cordial  in  his  intercourse 
with  all. 


JOHN   BIGLER 

fr    THE   ^DITOR 


JOHN  BiGLER,  who  was  SO  prominent  and  active  in  the 
early  settlement  and  development  of  California,  and 
who  has  played  so  conspicuous  a  part  in  the  political 
history  of  the  State,  was  born  near  Carlisle,  Pennsyl- 
vania, the  seat  of  Dickinson  College,  January  8th,  1805. 

He  is  of  German  descent.  The  family  has  been 
established  in  America  for  more  than  a  century.  Both 
the  paternal  and  maternal  grandfather  of  John  Bigler 
fought  under  Gen.  Morgan  in  the  Revolutionary  war. 
His  father  was  a  farmer:  for  many  years  he  was  engaged 
in  the  milling  business  in  Cumberland  and  Perry  coun- 
ties, Pennsylvania.  During  the  noted  '' Whisky  Re- 
bellion" in  the  western  part  of  that  State,  1791,  1794,  he 
was  a  private  soldier  under  Gen.  Washington. 

John  was  the  eldest  of  five  sons.  The  Pennsylvania 
statesman,  William  Bigler,  is  a  younger  brother.  John 
entered  college  at  Carlisle ;  but  soon  after  he  commenced 
his  studies,  his  father  removed  to  Mercer  county,  north 
of  Pittsburg,  and  placed  him  in  a  printer's  office  in  that 
city,  where,  for  a  few  years,  he  applied  himself  to  "the 
art  preservative  of  all  arts."  After  the  expiration  of  his 
apprenticeship,  in  1827,  he  removed  to  Belief onte.  Centre 
county,  and  took  editorial  charge  of  the  Centre  County 
Democrat.  He  continued  the  editing  as  well  as  the  pub- 
lishing of  this  journal  from  1827  until  1832.  In  1828, 
though  but  a  youth,  he  advocated  with  zeal  and  efficiency 
the  election  of  Gen.  Jackson,  for  whom  his  county  gave 
a  majority  of  more  than  sixteen  hundred  votes.  He  then 
commenced  the  study  of  law,  which  he  pursued  until 


48  EEPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE  PACIFIC. 

1840,  when  he  was  admitted  to  the  bar.  Thereupon  lie 
entered  on  the  practice  of  his  profession,  devoting  to  it 
his  whole  time  for  several  years.  We  next  find  him 
practicing  at  Mount  Sterling,  Illinois,  whither  he  had  re- 
moved with  his  family.  On  April  2d,  1849,  he  left  the 
Prairie  State  to  emigrate  overland  to  California.  He  had 
with  him  his  wife  and  only  living  child,  a  daughter  of 
tender  years. 

This  little  family  were  accompanied  b}^  several  of 
their  neighbors,  who  were  also  burning  to  behold  the 
land  of  promise.  On  the  30th  of  April,  the  party,  num- 
bering less  than  twenty  persons,  assembled  at  St.  Joseph, 
Missouri.  From  this  place  the  adventurous  company 
started  on  the  9th  of  May. 

'^On  that  day,"  to  use  the  language  of  Gov.  Bigler 
himself,  in  his  Address  to  the  Sacramento  Pioneers  in 
1865,  ''the  long  journey  was  commenced  in  good  earnest, 
and  with  a  fixed  determination  on  the  part  of  all  to  meet 
difficulties  to  be  overcome,  dangers  to  be  encountered, 
and  privations  to  be  endured,  with  inflexible  fidelity  to 
each  other,  and  as  far  as  possible  refi^ain  from  expressions 
calculated  to  cause  discontent  or  discouragement." 

Mr.  Bigler  had  fully  entered  upon  his  pilgrimage  to  a 
land  where  high  honors  awaited  him,  and  was  surrounded 
by  cheerful  and  happy  companions ;  but  his  heart  was 
heavy  with  sorrow.  His  wife,  who  had  refused  to  part 
with  him,  was  in  delicate  health,  his  daughter  was  a  mere 
child,  as  stated,  and  these  frail  charges  he  was  taking 
with  him  on  a  long  and  perilous  journey.  Besides,  he 
was  leaving  behind  him  the  mouldering  form  of  an  only 
and  dearly  beloved  son,  whom  death  had  but  recently 
wrested  from  his  bosom  and  given  to  the  grave.  He  had 
shaken  off  despondency,  but  could  not  free  himself  from 
gloomy  thoughts. 

Gov.  Bigler  has  given  a  detailed  account  of  his  weary 
march  overland,  in  the  address  before  alluded  to.  He 
did  his  full  share  of  hard  work  throughout  the  entire 
journey.  He  drove  his  own  ox-team  across  the  plains, 
and  stood  guard  regularly  over  the  train  of  wagons.  On 
many  occasions,  when  he  was  greatly  fatigued,  or  in  need 


JOHN   BIGLER.  49 

of  sleep,  his  wife  would  relieve  him;  and  in  addition  to 
standing  guard,  she  would  often  assist  in  yoking  the 
oxen  to  the  wagons. 

When  about  twenty-five  miles  east  of  the  upper 
crossing  of  the  Sweetwater,  the  Governor's  party  were 
overtaken  by  Wm.  T.  Coleman.  This  gentleman  had, 
two  days  previous,  left  his  train  with  others  to  go  upon 
a  hunting  tour:  he  had  become  bewildered  in  the  hills, 
and  for  some  length  of  time  had  not  tasted  food.  His 
new  acquaintances  had  the  pleasure  of  supplying  his 
wants,  and  he  was  enabled  to  move  forward  in  search  of 
his  companions.  The  accidental  meeting  of  these  two 
men,  in  the  heart  of  the  trackless  desert,  could  not  have 
been  more  friendly,  nor  their  parting  more  cordial,  even 
if  the  veil  had  been  lifted  from  the  future,  and  their  sub- 
sequent eminence  disclosed  to  them.  What  pleasurable 
emotions  must  be  awakened  in  the  breasts  of  the  suc- 
cessful politician  and  the  merchant  prince,  whenever  their 
thoughts  recur  to  that  brief  interview! 

Mr.  Bigler  and  family  at  length  arrived  in  Sacramento, 
August  31st,  1849;  his  wife  and  daughter  being,  it  is 
said,  the  first  white  female  emigrants  to  Sacramento. 

Upon  his  arrival,  finding  there  was  no  call  for  his 
legal  services  in  the  new,  unsettled  community,  and  being 
in  want  of  immediate  funds  to  make  his  family  comfort- 
able, Mr.  Bigler  determined  to  resort  to  manual  labor. 
He  took  off  his  coat,  or  rather  Icept  off  his  coat,  and 
sought  employment.  He  soon  obtained  a  situation  in 
the  store  of  an  auctioneer,  named  Stevens,  where  he 
worked  for  some  time.  Xext,  he  engaged  in  the  wood 
trade,  cutting  his  wood  in  the  country,  near  Sacramento, 
and  carrying  it  into  the  city  for  sale.  After  prosecuting 
this  business  for  some  time,  he  contracted  with  a  Sacra- 
mento merchant  to  make  a  number  of  calico  comforters 
for  beds.  In  addition  to  his  other  compensation,  he  re- 
ceived from  his  employer  sufficient  calico  to  furnish  his 
wife  and  daughter  with  much-needed  dresses. 

After  completing  the  comforter  contract,  he  was  for 
some  time  employed  in  unloading  the  river  steamers  on 
their  arrival,  for  which  he  received  pay  at  the  rate  of  hvo 
4 


50  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

dollars  per  Iwur.  By  such  laborious  pursuits  as  these  he 
maintained  himself  and  family  in  comparative  comfort. 
Nor  was  he  less  esteemed  by  his  neighbors,  because  of 
his  honest  toil.  The  pioneers,  nearly  all  of  them,  were 
engaged  in  actual  physical  labor,  without  regard  to  former 
associations  or  professional  pursuits.  Labor  was  their 
acknowledged  king. 

The  time  had  now  arrived  when  our  subject  was  to 
abandon  his  humble  occupations.  About  the  middle  of 
October,  1849,  he  was  notified  by  Mr.  Charles  Sackett,  on 
behalf  of  the  citizens,  that  he  had  been  nominated  at  a 
public  meeting  as  a  candidate  for  the  Assembly.  The 
Sacramento  legislative  district  then  extended  from  the 
Cosumnes  river  to  the  Oregon  line,  and  from  the  Coast 
Range  to  the  line  then  dividing  California  and  Utah. 
This  district  was  then  entitled  to  four  senators  and  nine 
assemblymen.  The  election  was  a  general  one,  and  took 
place  November  13th,  1849. 

The  candidates  for  Governor  were  Peter  H.  Burnett, 
afterwards  Supreme  Judge  of  the  State,  and  now  President 
of  the  Pacific  Bank,  San  Francisco ;  John  W.  Geary,  the 
late  distinguished  Governor  of  Pennslyvania ;  Gen.  John 

A.  Sutter,  and  others.  The  first  named  gentleman  received 
a  large  majority  of  the  votes  cast.  John  McDougal  was 
elected  Lieutenant  Governor,  and  Geo.  W.  Wright  and 
Edward  Gilbert  were  chosen  members  of  Congress.  In 
the  Sacramento  legislative  district,  John  Bidwell,  Thomas 
J.  Green,  Henry  E.  Robinson,  and  Elisha  Crosby,  were 
elected  senators,  and  Dr.  T.  J.  White,  Elisha  W.  McKinstry, 
(the  present  able  County  Judge  of  San  Francisco)  George 

B.  Tingley,  John  Bigler,  P.  B.  Cornwall,  John  F.  Williams, 
E.  Card  well,  T.  J.  Hughes,  and  Madison  Walthall,  assem- 
blymen. 

Before  the  Legislature  assembled,  the  rainy  season  set 
in,  and  Sacramento  was  almost  deluged.  The  citizens  at 
that  early  day  were  very  poorly  sheltered  from  the  wintry 
weather.  Much  suffering  was  the  consequence.  Mr. 
Bigler  and  family  were  compelled  to  endure  trials  and 
privations  which  it  had  never  been  their  misfortune  to 
meet  before,  even  on  the  uninhabited  desert  wastes  where 


JOHN  BIGLER.  51 

they  had  so  often  encamped.  The  roof  of  their  cloth  tene- 
ment admitted  the  rain.  It  was  necessary  to  suspend  an 
umbrella  over  their  heads  at  night,  in  order  to  turn  aside 
the  rain  from  their  faces.  Every  morning,  for  more  than 
two  weeks,  the  floor  of  their  tent  was  flooded.  Every 
morning,  for  that  length  of  time,  their  little  cooking  stove 
was  taken  out  and  emptied  of  its  liquid  contents.  Their 
bedstead  was  four  forked  sticks,  driven  into  the  ground, 
with  two  round  willow  poles  forming  the  railing;  short 
poles,  extended  crosswise,  served  as  bedcords. 

The  first  State  Legislature  convened  at  the  capital,  San 
Jose,  on  December  15th,  1849,  to  complete  the  organization 
of  the  State  government.  On  December  12th,  Mr.  Bigler 
left  Sacramento  with  his  family  for  San  Jose  on  a  pro- 
peller, the  steamer  McKim.  Arriving  at  San  Francisco 
at  night,  in  the  midst  of  a  tempest,  they  could  not  land 
till  morning,  when,  they  were  put  into  small  boats  and 
taken  ashore  at  a  point  on  Clay  street,  between  Mont- 
gomery and  Sansome — the  waters  of  the  bay  reaching  to 
that  point  at  that  time. 

The  streets  of  the  metropolis  were  almost  impassable. 
Mr.  Bigler  had  to  wander  for  several  hours  in  search  of 
lodgings.  Finally,  in  a  despairing  mood,  he  applied  to 
the  keeper  of  a  restaurant,  James  Hagan,  who  allowed  the 
little  party  to  occupy  an  upper  room,  unfurnished,  except 
with  an  old  straw  mattrass.  The  Governor  asserts  that 
never,  in  his  life,  was  he  more  grateful  for  a  favor  than 
for  the  privilege  of  occupying  this  humble  apartment. 
He  afterwards  remembered  the  circumstance  to  his  bene- 
factor's advantage,  by  inducing  Gov.  Burnett  to  bestow 
upon  Hagan  a  lucrative  office. 

The  next  day,  he  took  passage  on  the  Mint^  a  little 
steamer  bound  for  the  ^' Embarcadero,"  fiYe  or  six  miles 
from  San  Jose.  He  soon  found  himself  and  family  in  the 
midst  of  unexpected  peril,  more  fearful  than  any  that  had 
ever  before  encompassed  them.  About  three  hours  after 
the  frail  craft  had  commenced  her  vo3'age,  she  was  over- 
taken by  a  terrific  storm.  The  captain,  engineer  and  crew, 
being  inexperienced,  became  panic-stricken  and  aban- 
doned their  posts.      Their  conduct  added   to  the  con- 


62  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

sternation  of  the  passengj^s,  most  of  whom  were  motion- 
less with  terror.  On  board  of  the  threatened  boat  were 
a  majority  of  the  senators  elect^  ten  or  twelve  assembly- 
men, and  the  Lieutenant  Governor.  Commander  Selim 
Wood  worth,  a  senator  elect,  was  among  the  passengers. 
This  gentleman,  upon  witnessing  the  pusillanimous  con- 
duct of  the  officers  and  crew,  rushed  to  the  wheel  and 
ordered  the  engineer  and  fireman  to  resume  their  places. 
He  stated  to  a  friend  standing  near  him,  that  there  was 
room  for  hope  unless  the  boat  overturned  in  changing 
her  course.  In  turning,  the  vessel  shipped  water,  which 
flooded  her  cabin  to  the  depth  of  ten  or  twelve  inches. 
But  the  new  captain's  noble  purpose  was  effected,  and  the 
prow  of  the  Mint  headed  for  San  Francisco,  where  her 
passengers  were  soon  landed.  Most  of  them  refused  to 
take  passage  again  upon  the  insecure  vessel,  and  went 
overland  to  the  capital ;  but  Mr.  Bigler  .had  no  choice — he 
had  paid  his  fare,  and  for  want  of  funds  was  compelled 
to  run  the  chances  of  shipwreck.  Fortunately,  however, 
the  next  day  beamed  clear  and  bright;  the  broad,  beautiful 
bay  was  in  perfect  repose ;  and  the  voyage  was  made  with- 
out the  recurrence  of  a  single  unpleasant  incident. 

The  first  Legislature  of  the  State  of  California  con- 
vened at  San  Jose,  December  16th,  1849.  The  Lieutenant 
Grovernor  elect,  Hon.  John  McDougal,  took  the  chair  as 
President  of  the  Senate,  and  Dr.  Thos.  J.  White  of  Sac- 
ramento was  chosen  Speaker  of  the  Assembly.  On  the 
20th  day  of  December,  1849,  Peter  H.  Burnett  was  in- 
augurated first  Governor  of  California.  On  the  same 
day  two  United  States  Senators  were  elected — John  C. 
Fremont  on  the  first,  and  Wm.  M.  Gwin  on  the  third 
ballot.  December  22d,  in  joint  convention  of  the  two 
houses,  Richard  Roman  was  elected  State  Treasurer, 
John  S.  Houston,  Comptroller,  E.  J.  C.  Kewen,  Attorney 
General,  Charlies  J.  Whiting,  Surveyor  General,  S.  C. 
Hastings,  Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court,  and  Henry 
A.  Lyons  and  Nathaniel  Bennett,  Associate  Justices. 
This  being  accomplished,  the  late  Edmund  Randolph  and 
John  Bigler  were  appointed  a  committee,  on  the  part  of 
the  assembly,  to  wait  on  the  Provisional  Governor,  Gen. 


JOHN   BIGLER.  63 

Riley,  and  inform  him  "'  that  a  State  government,  repub- 
lican in  form,  had  been  fully  organized  for  California; 
and  that  the  representatives  of  the  people  would  be 
pleased  to  hear  and  respectfully  consider  any  and  all  sug- 
gestions which  he  might  believe  himself  authorized  to 
make." 

The  committee  waited  upon  Gen.  Riley  and  made 
their  address.  The  General's  reply  was  brief  and  sig- 
nificant. He  trusted  that  the  committee  were  as  happy 
in  being  the  chosen  agents  of  the  new  State,  as  he  was 
in  being  relieved  from  all  cares  and  responsibilities  con- 
nected therewith.  The  committee  then  interrogated  Gen. 
Riley  as  to  the  ''  Civil  Fund,"  and^his  willingness  to  pay 
into  the  State  treasury  the  funds  collected  by  officers  of 
the  United  States  army  and  navy  on  importations,  with- 
out authority  of  law — an  amount  sufficient  to  defray  the 
expenses  of  the  new  government  until  a  revenue  system 
could  be  matured,  and  the  collection  of  government  dues 
commenced  in  pursuance  thereof.  The  prompt  reply  was, 
that,  instead  of  acceding  to  the  request  of  the  committee, 
the  Provisional  Governor  would  pay  every  cent  of  the 
so-called  Civil  Fund  into  the  national  treasury.  This  re- 
sponse was  as  unexpected  as  it  was  unwelcome.  Gen. 
Riley  had  previously  paid  the  expenses  of  the  Constitu- 
tional Convention,  in  full,  out  of  the  ''  Civil  Fund." 

Messrs.  Randolph  and  Bigler,  on  behalf  of  the  Assem- 
bly, claimed  that  this  action  of  the  General  left  his 
refusal  to  pay  the  balance  of  the  ''  Civil  Fund"  into  the 
State  treasury  without  plausible  excuse.  Moreover,  the 
members  of  the  Constitutional  Convention,  before  pro- 
ceeding to  the  work  of  framing  a  State  Constitution,  had 
received  assurances  that  the  remainder  of  the  funds,  col- 
lected as  stated,  would  be  paid  into  the  State  treasury  as 
soon  as  the  State  government  was  fully  organized  and 
that  fact  officially  reported.  It  is  not  now  definitely 
known  whether  or  not  Gen.  Riley  had  promised  directly 
to  pay  over  the  ^'  Fund"  to  the  State.  It  is  certain,  how- 
ever, that  prominent  members  of  the  Constitutional  Con- 
vention informed  the  State  authorities  elect,  that  the 
General  had  assured  them  that  he  would  do  so.     It  is  very 


54  REPRESENTATrV^E   MEN   OF   THE  PACIFIC. 

probable  that  Gen.  Riley's  action  was  based  upon  advices 
received  by  him  from  the  authorities  at  Washington. 
However,  he  refused  to  pay  over  to  the  State  the  ^'  Civil 
Fund,"  as  expected,  and  his  refusal  left  the  new  govern- 
ment in  a  very  embarrassing  and  awkward  plight.  An 
empty  treasury  rendered  immediate  action  necessary  on 
the  part  of  the  Legislature. 

Rashness  and  thoughtlessness  have  been  attributed  to 
the  pioneers,  in  forming  a  State  government  without  hav- 
ing first  provided  means  for  meeting,  in  part,  accruing 
expenses;  and  their  conduct  has  been  imputed  to  the  in- 
fluence of  ambitious  men  who  looked  to  a  State  govern- 
ment for  preferment  and  fortune.  These  charges  are 
unjust.  The  necessities  of  the  time  forced  the  pioneers 
to  take  the  action  they  did.  Grov.  Bigler  publicly  stated, 
in  the  address  alluded  to,  that  he  hnew  the  belief  was  general 
that  the  '^  Civil  Fund" — over  one  million  three  hundred  thou- 
sand dollars — would  be  passed  to  the  State  authorities;  and 
that  this  belief  induced  hundreds  to  favor  State  organiza- 
tion who  would  otherwise  have  opposed  it. 

In  addition  to  thi^,  the  course  pursued  by  the  pio- 
neers finds  vindication  in  the  failure  of  Congress  to 
establish  a  Territorial  government  for  California — many 
believing  that  without  a  State  government,  anarchy  would 
ensue.  The  Provisional  government  had  been  found  in- 
adequate. The  people  of  the  southern  part  of  the  State, 
as  well  as  those  of  Napa,  Sonoma,  and  Solano,  regarded 
the  movement  to  frame  a  State  constitution  as  prema- 
ture; and  the  vote  upon  the  question  must  have  been 
very  close  in  the  Constitutional  Convention,  but  for  the 
assurances  before  stated  in  regard  to  the  ^'  Civil  Fund." 

To  provide  means  to  sustain  the  State  government,  the 
Legislature,  in  its  unpleasant  and  trying  position,  determ- 
ined to  authorize  the  issuance  of  bonds,  hesirmg  three  per 
cent,  per  month  interest.  Mr.  Bigler,  while  he  freely  ad- 
mitted that  the  plan  adopted  by  the  Legislature  was  not 
without  justification,  yet  warmly  opposed  it,  believing  its 
consequences  would  prove  disastrous. 

On  the  10th  day  of  January,  1850,  Mr.  Bigler  was 
chosen  speaker  pro  tern,  of  the  Assembly ;  and  on  the  6th 


JOHN  BIGLER.  55 

day  of  February  following,  he  was  unanimously  elected 
Speaker,  Dr.  White  having  resigned  that  position. 

In  the  first  Legislature,  nearly  every  State  in  the  Union 
was  represented.  Judge  De  La  Guerra  and  Gen.  Yallejo 
were  the  native  Californian  members.  In  this  body,  no 
senator  or  assemblymen  possessed  a  white  shirt  or  a  fur 
hat;  all  wore  ^^flop"  hats  and  ^'hickory"  shirts,  as  they 
were  termed.  An  English  artist  took  crayon  sketches 
of  all  the  members  of  both  houses.  They  were  creditable 
likenesses,  and  were  seen  a  few  years  ago  in  one  of  the 
principal  museums  of  London. 

In  January,  1850,  Mr.  Bigler  introduced  and  procured 
the  passage  by  the  Legislature  of  joint  resolutions  favoring 
the  construction  of  the  Pacific  Railroad.  These  resolu- 
tions are  here  inserted,  as  matter  of  historic  interest. 
They  read  as  follows : 

''  Joint  Resolutions  in  relation  to  a  National  Railroad 
from  the  Pacific  Ocean  to  the  Jlfississippi  River. 

^'  1st.  Be  it  resolved  by  the  Senate  and  Assembly  of  the 
State  of  California,  that  our  senators  in  Congress  be  in- 
structed, and  our  representatives  requested,  to  urge  upon 
Congress  the  importance  of  authorizing,  as  soon  as  prac- 
ticable, the  construction  of  a  IS^'ational  Railroad  from  the 
Pacific  Ocean  to  the  Mississippi  River. 

''  2d.  Resolved^  That  they  be  further  instructed  to  urge 
upon  the  national  government,  with  a  view  to  facilitate 
the  great  work  contemplated  in  the  first  resolution,  the 
immediate  organization  of  an  efficient  engineer  corps,  to 
make  complete  surveys  and  explorations  of  the  several 
routes  which  have  been  recommended  to  public  notice  as 
practicable  for  the  line  of  said  road. 

'^  3d.  Resolvedj  That  his  Excellency  the  Governor  be 
requested  to  forward  to  each  of  our  senators  and  repre- 
sentatives in  Congress  a  certified  copy  of  the  foregoing 
joint  resolutions. 

John  Bigler, 

Speaker  of  the  Assembly. 
John  McDougal, 

President  of  the  Senate. 

San  Jose,  March  11th,  1850." 

Statutes  of  Cahfornia^  1st  session,  (1850)  page  465. 


56  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

During  this  session  of  the  Legislature,  Mr.  Bigler  also 
gave  his  earnest  advocacy  to  the  Homestead  law. 

The  first  Legislature  was  popularly  known  as  the 
^'  Legislature  of  a  Thousand  Drinks'' ;  and  before  this  body 
of  faithful,  hard-working  old  pioneers  is  dismissed  from 
notice,  the  origin  of  the  merry  appellative  will  be  ex- 
plained. There  is  an  incorrect  popular  notion  that  this 
title  was  appropriate  to  the  character  and  habits  of  the 
legislators.  Gen.  Green,  a  senator  from  Sacramento,  who 
had  rented  a  room  adjoining  the  Senate  chamber,  before 
the  latter  had  been  set  apart  for  the  use  of  the  State, 
w^as  in  the  habit,  after  the  daily  adjournment  of  the  two 
houses,  of  inviting  his  friends  to  his  apartment  to  par- 
take of  choice  old  Bourbon,  of  which  he  had  a  supply. 
Tliis  invitation  was  uniformly  given  in  a  loud  and  happy 
tone  of  voice,  and  invariably  in  these  liberal  words: 
^^  Walk  m^  gentlemen!  walk  in!  and  take  a  thousand  drinks  f 
The  genial,  generous  senator  could  not  have  foreseen 
that,  in  coming  years,  his  thoughtless  words  would  be 
quoted  to  the  disparagement  of  his  sober  colleagues. 

In  the  fall  of  1850,  Mr.  Bigler  was  a  second  time 
elected  a  member  of  the  Assembly— this  time  represent- 
ing Sacramento  county,  the  first  legislature  having  divided 
the  State  into  counties.  Upon  the  meeting  of  the  Legis- 
lature in  January,  1851,  he  was  again  chosen  Speaker  of 
the  Assembly. 

In  the  following  summer,  he  received  the  Democratic 
nomination  for  the  office  of  Governor,  to  which,  in  the 
succeeding  fall,  he  was  elected  by  the  people;  his  com- 
petitor being  the  late  Major  Pierson  B.  Reading,  the 
Whig  candidate. 

In  January,  1852,  Mr.  Bigler  entered  upon  his  guber- 
natorial duties,  and  served  out  his  term  of  two  years. 
In  the  fall  of  1853,  he  was  again  elected  Governor  by  the 
Democracy,  and  served  out  his  second  term  of  two  years 
from  January  1st,  1854. 

In  the  fall  of  1855,  he  was,  for  the  third  time,  the 
chosen  standard-bearer  of  his  party  for  the  high  office 
which  he  had  held  for  nearly  four  years.  This  time,  he 
met  his  first  political  defeat — together  with  the  entire 


JOHN  BIGLER.  57 

Democratic  ticket — at  the  hands  of  the  Native  American 
or  Know-Nothing  party,  marshalled  under  the  leadership 
of  J.  xvTeely  Johnson,  now  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court 
of  Nevada. 

Released  from  the  responsibilities  of  public  trust, 
which  had  engrossed  his  time  and  attention  ever  since 
his  first  election  to  the  Assembly  in  1849,  a  period  of  six 
years,  Grov.  Bigler  availed  himself  of  this  first  recess  in 
his  public  life  to  visit  his  native  State.  While  there,  the 
presidential  campaign  of  1856  opened  with  that  vigor 
and  asperity  which  marked  its  continuance.  The  Dem- 
ocracy had  placed  in  the  field  an  honored  and  favorite 
son  of  Pennsylvania.  Their  chief  opponent,  the  Repub- 
lican party,  rallied  (and,  for  a  new  party,  with  unex- 
ampled spirit)  under  the  standard  of  one  of  the  first 
United  States  senators  from  California.  The  last-named 
organization,  destined  to  control  the  government  unin- 
terruptedly for  so  many  years,  was  struggling  to  wrest 
the  administration  of  national  affairs  from  the  Democracy 
four  years  in  advance  of  the  appointed  time. 

All  men  looked  to  Pennsylvania  as  the  battle-ground 
where  the  result  must  be  decided.  The  contest  was 
bitter.  Grov.  Bigler,  devotedly  attached  to  his  party, 
which  had  given  him  distinction  in  the  State  of  his 
adoption,  took  the  stump  in  behalf  of  that  party  in  the 
State  of  his  nativity.  He  labored  untiringly  throughout 
the  campaign,  and  at  its  conclusion,  had  the  pleasure  of 
seeing  the  Keystone  State,  by  a  tremendous  majority, 
cast  her  vote  for  the  chosen  leader  of  his  party ;  a  result 
he  aided  very  materially  to  secure.  The  Democracy  of 
that  great  Commonwealth,  through  the  leading  Demo- 
cratic papers  of  the  State,  gratefully  acknowledged  the 
efficiency  of  the  services  rendered  in  their  behalf  by 
their  distinguished  visitor. 

But  two  weeks  had  clasped  after  the  presidential 
election  when  Gov.  Bigler  returned  to  California,  and  set- 
tled at  Sacramento,  his  old  home.  However,  he  was  to 
remain  only  a  short  time  in  private  life.  President 
Buchanan  had  not  been  in  office  a  month,  when  he  ap- 
pointed Gov.  Bigler  Envoy  Extraordinary  and  Minister 


58  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Plenipotentiary  to  the  Republic  of  Chile.  This  was  the 
first  compliment  of  the  kind  ever  paid  to  a  citizen  of  the 
United  States  on  the  Pacific  coast;  though  Gen.  Pierce 
had,  before  the  close  of  his  term  of  office,  tendered  to 
Gov.  Bigler,  first,  the  mission  to  Portugal,  and  afterwards 
that  to  Sweden  and  Norway,  both  of  which  he  declined. 
His  appointment  as  minister  to  Chile  was  confirmed  by  the 
Senate,  and  he  soon  left  California  for  Washington,  whence 
shortly  after  he  departed  with  his  family  upon  his  mission. 
He  continued  to  discharge  the  duties  of  this  position 
throughout  the  full  term  of  President  Buchanan's  ad- 
ministration. While  minister  to  Chile,  he  settled  the  cele- 
brated ''Macedonian  Claim"  against  that  country,  which 
had  been  pending  ever  since  its  first  presentation  by 
Commodore  Porter,  in  1820. 

He  also  settled  the  case  of  the  whaler  Franklin^  which 
had  been  the  subject  of  unpleasant  dispute  for  more 
than  twenty  years;  and  adjusted  the  murder  case  of 
Horatio  Gates  Jones,  one  of  the  most  important  and  per- 
plexing ever  acted  upon  by  an  American  minister. 

During  his  ministerial  career,  he  was  influential  in 
obtaining  a  test  of  American  and  British  locomotives  on 
the  Chile  railroads,  which  resulted  in  the  complete  triumph 
of  American  mechanical  skill  and  the  superiority  of 
American  locomotives. 

In  1861,  upon  the  arrival  of  Mr.  Lincoln's  appointee 
to  the  Chile  mission.  Gov.  Bigler  returned  to  California. 
He  found  his  party  in  a  decided  minority,  and  struggling 
to  maintain  its  organization.  In  1862,  he  accepted  a 
nomination  for  Congress.  The  Second  Congressional 
District,  which  embraces  Sacramento  county,  was  over- 
whelmingly Republican.  The  Democratic  candidate  and 
his  friends  had  no  expectations  of  success.  He  made  the 
canvass  solely  to  aid  in  keeping  the  party  organization 
intact.     Of  course,  his  defeat  followed. 

Since  his  return  from  Chile,  Gov.  Bigler  has  been  en- 
gaged in  the  practice  of  law  in  Sacramento,  where  he  has 
held  a  homestead  for  twenty  years.  A  part  of  this  time 
he  was  a  member  of  the  law-firm  of  Coffroth,  Bigler  & 
Spaulding.      Since   1862,  he  has  not   been   before   the 


JOHy   BIGLER.  -•^*"    59 

people  as  a  candidate  for  office:  he  has,  however,  been 
conspicuous  in  State  conventions,  and  was  a  delegate  from 
California  to  the  national  conventions  which  nominated 
Geo.  B.  McClellan  and  Horatio  Seymour  for  the  Presi- 
dency. 

In  October,  1867,  Gov.  Bigler  was  appointed  by 
President  Johnson  one  of  the  commissioners  to  examine 
and  pass  upon  the  work  of  the  Central  Pacific  Railroad 
Company,  his  associates  being  Hon.  Thomas  J.  Henley 
and  Frank  Denver.  No  happier  selection  could  have 
been  made  than  that  of  John  Bigler.  Ever  since  he 
pushed  his  weary  way  across  the  cheerless  prairies  that 
stretch  between  the  Sacramento  and  Missouri  rivers,  he 
has  felt  the  necessity  and  urged  the  construction  of  the 
great  continental  highway.  When  a  representative  of 
the  people,  early  in  1850,  as  already  shown,  he  com- 
menced the  clear  and  satisfactory  record  he  has  made  for 
himself  upon  this  great  question,  so  long  a  matter  of 
deep  anxiety  to  Californians.  During  his  visit  to  the 
East  in  1856,  while  a  witness  and  an  actor  in  a  mighty 
political  contest,  he  was  ever  zealous  in  his  efforts  to 
remove  any  objection  urged  against  the  feasibility  of  the 
construction  of  the  Pacific  Railroad.  In  the  Daily  Penn- 
sylvanian^  a  Philadelphia  newspaper,  of  November  20th, 
1856,  appeared  the  following^^ 

"  In  his  recent  visit  to  our  State,  Gov.  Bigler  every- 
where, in  public  speeches  and  in  private  conversations^ 
expressed  the  opinion  that,  in  the  construction  of  this 
great  work,  no  greater  difficulties  would  have  to  be  en- 
countered than  were  so  successfully  overcome  in  the  con- 
struction of  the  Pennsylvania  Central  Railroad.  No  one 
more  fully  appreciates  the  immense  advantages  that  would 
result  from  its  completion  than  Gov.  John  Bigler.  From 
its  inception  to  the  present  hour,  he  has  been  an  un- 
faltering advocate  of  this  gigantic  enterprise." 

The  great  undertaking  has  at  last  been  consummated, 
and  a  considerable  portion  of  it  under  Gov.  Bigler's  im- 
mediate supervision.  California,  in  the  nineteenth  year 
of  her  sovereignty,  has  been  linked  to  the  older  States 
with  iron  bonds  by  the  hand  of  skilled  labor,  and  in  this 


60  RFPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

union  the  dream  of  our  pioneers  has  been  fulfilled  and 
the  hopes  of  our  people  realized  ! 

During  his  long  residence  at  Sacramento,  Grov.  Bigler 
has  been  a  witness  of  all  the  many  trying  ordeals  through 
which  that  afflicted  but  enterprising  city  has  passed.  He 
has  seen  the  mountain  torrents,  leaping  from  a  hundred 
sources,  unite  their  raging  waters,  and  expanding  into 
the  strength  and  volume  of  an  ocean,  sweep  with  resist- 
less energy  over  and  around  her;  he  has  seen  the  fire- 
king  again  and  again  envelop  her  habitations  in  his 
consuming  arms;  he  has  repeatedly  exposed  his  life  in 
the  performance  of  noble  deeds,  when  plague  and  pesti- 
lence made  her  hearthstones  desolate. 

When  the  Asiatic  cholera  aj)peared  in  Sacramento,  in 
the  fall  of  1850,  Gov.  Bigler  immediately  devoted  him- 
self to  unremitting  efforts  for  relieving  the  sick  and 
burying  the  dead.  The  28th  of  October  w^as  a  day  of 
sadness  and  terror;  the  deaths  by  cholera  on  that  day 
numbered  ninety.  The  alarm  was  so  great  that  a  sufficient 
force  to  dig  graves  and  give  burial  to  the  victims  could 
not  be  obtained.  On  the  afternoon  of  that  day,  Gov. 
Bigler  remained  at  the  city  cemetery  until  dark.  The 
last  three  bodies  interred  were  consigned  to  the  grave  by 
Gov.  Bigler  and  an  assistant,  to  accomplish  which  the 
Governor  was  compelled  to  get  down  into  the  earth  ancl 
arrange  the  coffins  in  their  narrow  home. 

The  account  of  Dr.  Morse,  (now  a  leading  physician 
of  San  Francisco)  which  was  copied  in  the  Illustrated  His- 
tory of  Sacrainento^  pays  this  just  tribute  to  the  man  whose 
daring  and  kindness  of  heart  attracted  the  attention  and 
gratitude  of  his  fellow-men: 

''We  will  mention  one  name,  our  motive  for  which 
w^ill  be  readily  acknowledged  more  as  the  extortion  of 
truth  than  the  result  of  partisan  partiality.  That  name 
is  John  Bigler,  the  present  Governor  of  California.  This 
man,  with  strong  impulses  of  sympathy,  could  be  seen 
in  every  refuge  of  distress  that  concealed  the  miseries 
of  the  dying  and  the  destitute.  With  a  lump  of  gum- 
camphor  as  large  as  a  moderate-sized  inkstand,  now  in 
his  pocket  and  anon  at  his  nostrils,  he  braved  every  scene 


JOHN   BIGLER.  61 

of  danger  that  was  presented,  and  with  his  own  hands 
administered  relief  to  his  suffering  and  uncared-for 
fellow-beings." 

Where  is  the  man — the  political  opponent,  even — who 
would  not  eagerly  follow  the  writer,  did  he  allow  his  pen 
to  dwell  in  glowing  eulogy  upon  this  bright  chapter  in 
the  life  of  John  Bigler  ? 

It  will  be  seen  that,  during  the  best  part  of  his  life. 
Gov.  Bigler"  has  been  actively  engaged  in  the  discharge 
of  public  duties.  He  is  strictly  a  party  man.  He  has  the 
credit  of  being  a  very  shrewd  politician  and  a  keen  judge 
of  men.  To  the  fortunes  of  his  party  he  has  ever  adhered 
with  unfailing  devotion.  In  the  vigor  of  discipline  and 
the  flush  of  triumph,  he  has  led  its  columns  to  new 
achievements  and  attainment  of  great  ends;  and  when 
misfortune  overtook  and  disaster  appalled,  he  has  rallied 
its  scattered  legions  and  dauntlessly  flaunted  its  banner 
in  the  face  of  the  foe. 

And  the  party  to  which  he  has  so  steadfastly  clung, 
has  ever  delighted  to  do  him  honor.  Twice  a  member  of 
the  Assembly ;  twice  Speaker  of  that  body ;  twice  Governor 
of  the  State;  a  third  time  a  candidate  for  that  office;  for 
four  years  United  States  Minister  to  Chile;  again  the 
candidate  of  his  party  for  Congress;  three  times  an  ac- 
credited delegate  to  the  National  Democratic  Convention ; 
he  can  feel,  in  the  sunset  of  his  natural  and  political  life, 
that  his  party  has  not  been  unmindful  of  his  labors  in  its 
cause.  That  party  yet  proudly  points  to  the  consistency 
of  his  public  life,  and  the  qualities  which  adorn  his  charac- 
ter as  a  man. 

Gov.  Bigler  has  always  been  the  acknowledged  friend 
of  the  poor  and  laboring  classes.  He  has  uniformly  striven 
to  elevate  them,  and  ameliorate  their  condition.  His  en- 
tire public  life  has  been  signalized  by  patient  fidelity  to 
their  interests  and  claims.  He  has  not  forgotten  the  past, 
with  its  solemn  teachings.  He  is  proud  of  labor,  proud 
of  the  masses  who  live  by  labor,  and  proud  that  he  him- 
self has  been  compelled  to  labor. 

Not  success,  not  wealth,  not  rich  estates,  not  grandeur, 
nor  fame,  nor  the  applause  of  the  world,  could  make  him 


62         REPRESENTATIVE  MEN  OF  THE  PACIFIC. 

forget  the  humble  walks  he  trod  in  youth.  As  was  said 
of  ''nature's  sternest  painter,  yet  the  best,"  "the  ameni- 
ties of  the  refined  society  which  he  enjoys  in  mature 
manhood  never  occupy  his  imagination  so  much  as  the 
reminiscences  of  struggle,  suffering,  passion  and  disaster 
with  which  his  youth  was  familiar." 


%, 


(m^o^mm^w^  fs,)c  iBAii^ii[fS. 


[CommiPsioncdMaioi-  Creueral  ni\ftr  his  death] 


EDWARD  DICKINSON  BAKER. 


EDWARD  Dickinson  Baker  was  born  in  London,  in  1811. 
His  parents  emigrated  to  the  United  States,  and 
came  to  Philadelphia  in  1816.  They  were  highly  re- 
spectable persons,  of  energy,  good  sense,  and  accom- 
plished education.  Upon  the  arrival  of  his  parents  in 
Philadelphia  they  taught  school  for  a  few  years,  success- 
fully, at  a  time  when  that  city  was  probably  the  most 
renowned  of  any  in  the  Union  for  the  excellence  of  its 
institutions  of  learning,  and  the  ability  of  its  distinguished 
citizens.  His  early  lessons  of  religion  were  interwoven 
by  his  excellent  parents  with  classical  lore,  and  his  taste 
bent  to  the  purest  models,  and  his  precocious  genius 
gratified  in  its  thirst  for  books.  His  father  had  heard 
and  read  of  our  great  government,  founded  by  Washing- 
ton and  his  compatriots,  and  regarded  it  as  the  noblest 
work  of  human  wisdom  and  virtue,  the  most  munificent 
spectacle  of  human  happiness  ever  presented  to  the  vision 
of  man.  The  old  man  had  seen  sparks  of  irrepressible 
genius  in  his  darling  boy,  and  sought  a  theatre,  upon 
which,  without  resting  ingloriously  under  the  shadow  of 
a  titled  name,  without  ^'the  boast  of  heraldry,"  his  son 
could  make  his  mark  upon  the  page  of  history.  To  the 
enduring  honor  of  the  old  man,  be  it  remembered,  that 
notwithstanding  his  devotion  to  learning,  he  taught  his 
children  that  labor  was  honorable;  and  for  awhile  our 
lamented  hero  worked  at  the  trade  of  a  cabinet-maker. 
But  though  to  work  as  St.  Paul  did  with  his  own  hands 

*  For  explanatory  note,  see  Preface. 


64  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

is  honorable  among  all  men,  yet  the  Almighty  has  given 
men  different  gifts.  Baker's  genius  could  not  be  cramped 
by  the  persistent  continuance  of  an  occupation  in  which 
he  could  attain  the  highest  excellence  in  a  few  years. 
To  chain  such  a  mind  as  he  had  to  any  such  occupation, 
would  be  as  idle  as  to  attempt  to  persuade  the  bird  of 
Jove  to  quit  towering  '4n  his  pride  of  place,"  and  soaring 
aloft  above  the  clouds,  and  adopt  the  habits  of  our  useful 
domestic  fowls.  It  could  not  be.'  It  was  the  ^'Divinity 
that  stirred  within  him,"  and  whispered  that  he  was  born 
to  illustrate  great  principles  by  his  mental  efforts,  and  to 
die  gloriously,  as  he  did  die,  in  the  noblest  struggle  that 
ever  animated  the  soul  of  a  patriot-hero. 

I  can  imagine  that  sensible  father  holding  the  hand  of 
his  hope  and  joy  as  he  walked  through  the  streets  of  the 
patriotic  Quaker  city.  Here  he  showed  him  the  house 
where  Washington  dwelt,  and  the  church  in  which  the 
august  father  of  his  country  knelt  in  worship  before  the 
Lord  of  lords  and  King  of  kings.  Here  he  visited  Indepen- 
dence Hall.  Here  he  took  him  to  the  grave  of  Franklin,  and 
in  answer  to  the  inquiries  of  childish  curiosity,  he  would 
say  :  ^^  Washington,  my  son,  was  a  great  and  good  man, 
honored  by  the  brave  and  good  throughout  the  civilized 
world  ;  he  served  his  country  faithfully  through  a  long 
and  bloody  war,  and  founded  here,  amid  unexampled  diffi- 
culties, a  great  and  glorious  Union,  whose  laws  insure 
protection  to  the  honest  foreigner  and  welcome  him  to 
an  equal  participation  in  its  rewards  and  honors.  He 
earned  the  title,  nobler  far  than  that  of  King  or  Empe- 
ror— the  Father  of  his  Country.  Study  his  precepts  and 
venerate  his  character.  Benjamin  Franklin  was  poor  in 
early  life,  worked  with  his  own  hands,  and  by  industry 
became  one  of  the  most  distinguished  men  on  earth, 
itoger  Sherman  was  a  shoemaker,  but  honest  and  indus- 
trious, and  was  honored  by  his  fellow  citizens  and  earned 
immortality.  He,  like  Washington  and  Franklin,  was  a 
signer  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence.  These  illus- 
trious men,  with  their  patriotic  brethren  from  the  ice- 
bound region  of  the  distant  North,  and  the  sunny  clime 
of  the  South,  pledged  their  lives,  fortunes  and  sacred 


EDWARD   DICKINSON   BAKER.  65 

honor  to  the  achievement  of  Independence.  Remember 
their  example — be  true  to  that  country  which  they  hon- 
ored, which  honored  them,  and  may  honor  you,  if  you 
will.  This  immortal  struggle  was  one  in  which  patriots 
of  all  the  States  participated.  At  the  battle  of  German- 
town,  Nash,  from  North  Carolina,  that  State  the  first  to 
declare  her  Independence,  (then  peopled  by  thousands,  as 
now  by  tens  of  thousands,  of  good  men  and  true,)  here 
fell  a  martyr  in  the  cause  of  Freedom.  On  the  other 
side  of  this  majestic  river — the  Delaware,  which  Wash- 
ington crossed,  disregarding  the  terrible  inclemencies  of 
a  northern  winter — on  the  other  side,  is  the  State  of  New 
Jersey,  every  foot  of  whose  sod  is  a  soldier's  sepulchre. 
There  Mercer  of  Virginia  fell,  another  martyr  to  Free- 
dom's cause.  Be  true  to  the  memory  of  these  men. 
You  are  not  by  birth,  but  by  choice  can  be,  a  fellow-citi- 
zen of  this  heaven-blessed  Union.  The  prayers  and  hopes 
of  your  father  and  mother  are  that  you  will  prove  true  to 
this,  now  your  country,  to  its  institutions,  to  the  cause  of 
Freedom. " 

This  early  teaching  made  a  deep  and  lasting  impres- 
sion on  the  heart  and  mind  of  the  patriot-soldier.  These 
early  lessons  seem  ever  to  have  been  the  pillar  of  fire 
that  guided  his  course  in  his  public  career.  When  Col. 
Baker  was  still  a  boy,  his  father  died  in  Philadelphia.  In 
1828  he  left  that  city,  and  seeking  a  home  in  the  great 
West,  he  went  to  Carrolton,  Illinois,  where  he  borrowed 
books  and  commenced  the  study  of  the  law.  May  I  say, 
without  intruding  in  the  holy  precincts  of  family  sorrow, 
he  went  attended  by  a  mother's  prayers  and  counsels. 
That  mother  still  survives,  at  the  advanced  age  of  82 
years,  (1861).  She  is  as  remarkable  now  for  the  spright- 
liness  and  vigor  of  her  intellect,  as  she  was  in  earlier  life 
for  her  accomplishments  and  rare  endowments.  Venera- 
ble woman  ! 

"While  you  reverse  our  nature's  kindlier  doom, 
Pour  forth  a  mother's  sorrow  on  his  tomb. 

Millions  of  patriot  hearts  sympathise  in  your  sorrow. 
Look   for    comfort  to  Him  who  alone  can  give  it — who 


66  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF    THE   PACIFIC. 


'^doeth  all  things  well."  May  this  calamity,  while  it 
'loosens  another  one  of  the  bonds  that  bind  you  to  the 
earth,  divest  the  common  fate  of  one  more  of  its  terrors, 
and  create  through  the  hope  of  re-union  another  aspira- 
tion for  a  better  life  beyond  the  grave.  " 

In  1832  he  was  a  Major  in  what  is  known  as  the 
Black  Plawk  war. 

By  the  diligent  exertion  of  his  extraordinary  abilities, 
he  soon  attained  a  high  rank  in  his  profession — and  this 
is  no  slight  praise,  for  there  were  '^giants  in  the  land  in 
those  days. "  Hardin,  Douglas,  Lincoln  and  Logan  were 
his  rivals  and  friends,  and  acknowledged  his  prowess. 
For  ten  years  consecutively  he  was  a  member  of  the 
Legislature  of  the  State  of  Illinois.  In  December,  1845, 
he  entered  the  House  of  Bepresentative  from  the  Spring- 
field  District  in  Illinois,  a  member  of  the  29th  Congress. 
During  this  Congress,  war  existed  with  Mexico,  and  Baker 
left  his  place  in  the  House,  went  to  Illinois  and  raised  the 
4th  Regiment  organized  in  that  State.  He  went  with  his 
regiment  to  the  deadly  banks  of  the  Bio  Grande,  and 
entered  the  command  of  Gen.  Taylor.  In  December, 
1846,  he  returned  from  Mexico  on  urgent  public  business, 
and  in  the  House  of  Representative,  delivered  a  speech 
remarkable  for  its  force  and  intense  patriotic  feeling, 
which  subdued  •'partizan  opposition  and  produced  the 
fruits  he  desired,  of  additional  appropriation  for  the  com- 
fort of  the  soldiers  in  the  field.  After  this  visit  to  the 
seat  of  Government  he  resigned  his  seat  in  Congress  and 
returned  immediately  to  Mexico.  His  regiment  was  or- 
dered to  Yera  Cruz,  where  he  participated  in  the  capture 
of  the  Castle  of  San  Juan  de  Ulloa.  Very  soon  after- 
wards he  was  at  the  battle  of  Cerro  Gordo,  where  the 
gallant  Gen.  Shields  was  wounded  severely,  and  Baker, 
having  charge  of  the  attacking  column,  took  the  com- 
mand. History  has  told  us  the  story  of  the  good  conduct 
of  the  Colonel  who  commanded  the  4th  Illinois  Regiment, 
in  that  terrible  but  glorious  day.  After  the  war  was 
ended,  he  returned  to  Illinois,  and  was  honored  by  that 
State  with  a  sword,  in  grateful  recognition  of  his  valuable 
services. 


EDWARD   DICKINSON   BAKER.  6T 

In  1849,  while  a  resident  of  what  w^as  called  the  Sanga- 
mon or  Springfield  District,  he  was  urged  by  his  party 
friends  to  come  to  the  Galena  District,  then  strongly,  and 
to  any  other  person  but  Baker,  overwdielmingly  Demo- 
cratic. If  any  other  man  had  attempted  such  an  enter- 
prise, he  would  have  been  regarded  as  a  Don  Quixote. 
But  he  was  always  self-reliant.  He  had,  if  not  all  the 
ambition,  the  courage  and  genius  of  Julius  Cossar.  He 
commenced  there  to  advocate  those  principles  to  which 
through  his  life  he  had  been  attached,  with  unfaltering  de- 
votion. He  went  with  the  sling  of  Freedom  and  the  peb- 
ble of  Truth,  and  the  giant  Democracy  fell  before  him. 
He  served  in  the  31st  Congress  as  a  member  from  the 
Galena  District.  He  was  not  a  candidate  again,  and  his 
voice  not  being  heard,  the  Galena  District  was  again  de- 
cidedly Democratic. 

In  1851,  his  fervid  spirit,  always  seeking  some  difficult 
and  hazardous  exploit,  induced  him  to  embark  in  the  en- 
terprize  of  superintending  the  construction  of  the  Pana- 
ma Railroad.  Here  he  managed  a  large  body  of  men, 
and  here  he  was  revelling  in  the  belief  that  he  w^as  open- 
ing a  way  to  a  land  of  wines  and  fig-trees,  of  pome- 
granates, a  land  of  oil,  olive  and  honey — opening  the  road 
for  his  countrymen  in  all  parts  of  the  Union,  to  a  land 
forever  consecrated  to  freedom.  In  that  pestiferous  clim- 
ate,, in  'Hhose  poisonous  fields  with  rank  luxuriance 
crowned,"  under 

Those  blazing  suns  that  dai-t  a  downward  ray. 
And  fiercely  shed  intolerable  day, 

he  was  comforting  his  soul  with  the  assurance  that  he 
was  removing  obstructions  from  the  paths  of  free  labor, 
that  here,  on  this  our  blessed  shore,  it  might  have  its 
proudest  resting-place.  Nothing  but  a  strong  constitu- 
tion strengthened  by  the  most  exemplary  temperance,  a 
'^ frame  of  adamant,  a  soul  of  fire,"  and  an  indomitable 
will  sustained  him  under  the  effects  of  the  Panama  fever, 
which  troubled  him  for  several  years. 

In  June,  1852,  he  arrived  in  California.  Here  he  soon 
attained  a  high  rank  in  the  profession  of  the  law.     Many 


68  REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

pages  of  this  volume  might  be  filled  in  recounting  his 
many  triumphs  among  eminent  men  at  the  bar.  The 
country  well  knows  how  pre-eminently  great  he  was  in 
cases  of  life  and  death — how  irresistible  he  was,  when  he 
entranced  juries  by  the  magic  of  his  eloquence,  and  de- 
prived men  of  their  reason  as  he  overwhelmed  them  in 
admiration  of  his  transcendent  genius.  By  universal 
consent  he  was  regarded  as  having  no  rival  in  this  branch 
of  his  profession.  It  would  be  a  grateful  task  to  me,  and 
a  most  agreeable  one,  to  dwell  upon  the  beauties  of  many 
of  his  published  speeches.  Who  but  Baker  could  draw 
such  houses  in  old  Music  Hall,  as  Webster  alone  could 
summon  in  Faneuil  Hall?  Who  could  call  alike  the  stu- 
dent and  the  mechanic  to  hear  him  discourse  on  the  ad- 
vantages of  free  labor  and  the  duty  of  government  to  pro- 
tect and  encourage  it  ?  Who  could  dim  the  eye  of  beauty 
with  a  tear  of  sympathy  and  soften  the  heart  of  the  mi- 
ser in  one  and  the  same  effort,  while  he  pleaded  the  cause 
of  benevolence  and  heavenly  charity?  Who  like  him 
could  call  the  miner  from  digging  gold,  the  farmer  from 
his  plow,  the  man  of  business  from  his  work,  while  he 
talked  as  one  inspired  of  the  thousand  blessings  of  our 
Union,  and  the  greatness  that  awaited  us  in  the  future? 
To  those  who  have  thus  heard  him,  how  "stale,  flat  and 
unprofitable"  must  be  the  effort  of  any  other  !  How  of- 
ten, when  we  have  thus  heard  him,  with  a  heart  overflow- 
ing with  patriotism,  and  an  eye  of  fire,  when  he  spoke  of 
the  inestimable  value  of  our  Constitution  and  Union,  of 
our  mission  among  the  nations  of  the  earth,  when  he 
seemed  to  "stoop  to  touch  the  loftiest  thought"  which 
other  men  would  toil  laboriously  to  reach,  have  we 
thought  he  appeared  to  be  the  very  personification  of 
the  apostrophe  of  the  great  poet  of  nature  to  man  : 
"How  noble  in  reason,  how  infinite  in  faculties  ;  in  form 
and  moving,  how  express  and  admirable  ;  in  apprehension, 
how  like  a  god  !" 

He  remained  in  California  until  February,  1860.  Then 
he  attempted  and  achieved  what  no  other  man  but  E.  D. 
Baker  could  have  performed.  He  had  for  years  scatter- 
ed the  seeds  which  he  saw  had  at  last  promised  to  bring 


EDWARD   DICKINSON   BAKER.  69 

forth  good  fruit  in  California,  when  he  determined  to  per- 
form in  Oregon,  upon  a  larger  scale,  what  he  had  done  in 
Illinois.  Many  who  heard  of  his  intentions,  prophesied 
he  was  going  on  a  ^'sleeveless  errand,"  that  he  was  a 
Quixotic  Hotspur  who  imagined ''it  were  an  easy  leap 
to  pluck  bright  honor  from  the  pale-faced  moon. "  But 
he  went  to  Oregon.  He  drew  crowds  to  hear  him.  In 
a  little  more  than  six  months  he  appeared  again  among 
us,  on  his. way  to  Washington  City,  Senator  from  Oregon  ! 
It  was,  in  evil  conflict,  like  that  of  Julius  Csesar  in  arms 
over  Pharnaces,  as  described  by  himself,  Venij  vidi^  vici — 
If  ''Peace  hath  her  victories  as  well  as  War, "  where  is 
the  conqueror  whose  laurels  will  not  pale  their  ineflPectual 
glories,  before  those  of  Baker?  His  success  in  the  Gale- 
na District  of  Illinois  and  in  Oregon  is  unequaled  by  any- 
thing that  ever  occurred  in  the  history  of  our  country. 

He  took  his  seat  in  the  Senate  in  December,  1860. 
Much  was  expected  of  him ;  he  did  not  disappoint  the 
hopes  of  his  friends.  In  January,  1861,  in  answer  to  the 
talented  Benjamin,  the  skillful  and  accomplished  orator 
of  "high  exploit"  in  the  Senate — "a  fairer  person  lost 
not  heaven" — he  made  a  speech  celebrated  for  strength 
of  argument,  logical  power  and  majestic  eloquence, 
which  would  have  honored  the  Senate  in  the  days  of  Web- 
ster, Clay  and  Crittenden.  He  was  beyond  comparison 
the  foremost  man  in  debate  in  that  illustrious  body,  the 
Senate  of  the  United  States.  It  might  have  been  expect- 
ed, as  it  was  ardently  hoped  by  his  countrymen,  that  here 
he  would  remain,  and  enjoy  the  fruits  of  an  honorable 
ambition.  But  no  ;  it  was  ordered  otherwise  b}^  fate. 
The  ruling  passion  of  his  soul,  that  "made  his  ambition 
virtue" — an  unconquerable  wish  to  serve  and  save  his 
country,  drowned  all  selfish  suggestions  of  individual 
comfort.  In  his  own  glowing  words  in  the  House  of  Rep- 
resentatives, in  1850,  "I  have  bared  my  bosom  to  the 
battles  on  the  Northwestern  frontier  in  my  youth,  and  on 
the  Southwestern  frontier  in  my  manhood  ;  and  if  the 
time  should  come  when  disunion  rules  the  hour,  and  dis- 
cord is  to  reign  supreme,  I  shall  again  be  ready  to  give 
the   best   blood   in  my   veins  to  my  country's  cause." 


70  REPRESENTATIVE   IklEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

The  time  had  come,  and  he  was  ready  to  do  at  the  can- 
non's mouth  what  he  had  professed  in  the  halls  of  Con- 
gress. His  noble  soul  was  on  the  side  of  his  country  in 
the  dreadful  contest  brought  about  by  desperate  and 
wicked  ambition.  His  voice  in  the.  Senate  and  in  the 
public  assemblies  stirred  the  hearts  of  his  countrymen  to 
rally  in  support  of  the  best  Government  ever  seen  by 
man.  After  the  adjournment  of  Congress  he  attended  a 
public  meeting  in  New  York,  in  April,  1861,  probably  the 
largest  ever  held  in  our  country,  and  there,  amid  the 
learned  and  able  men  of  that  great  city,  he  stimulated 
the  public  mind  and  aroused  his  countrymen  to  renewed 
efforts  in  behalf  of  our  Union.  It  was  there  he  spoke  by 
the  side  of  the  lion-hearted,  the  patriotic  Dickinson — 
himself  remarkable  for  strength  of  intellect  and  great 
power  of  oratory — who  at  a  speech  in  Brooklyn,  New 
York,  thus  speaks  of  our  friend  : 

Alas,  poor  Baker !  He  was  swifter  than  an  eagle !  He  was 
stronger  than  a  lion !  and  the  very  soul  of  bravery  and  manly 
daring.  He  spoke  by  my  side  at  the  great  Union  Square  meeting 
in  April,  and  his  words  of  fiery  and  patriotic  eloquence  yet  ring 
upon  my  ear.  And  has  that  noble  heart  ceased  to  throb — that 
pulse  to  play?  Has  that  beaming  eye  been  closed  in  death?  Has 
that  tongue  of  eloquence  been  silenced  for  ever?  Yes,  but  he  has 
died  in  the  cause  of  humanity — 

"Whether  on  the  scaffold  high, 
Or  in  the  army's  van. 
The  fittest  place  for  man  to  die 
Is  where  he  dies  for  man  \" 

He  raised  a  regiment  and  led  them  on  in  their  coim- 
try's  cause.  It  is  not  necessary  now  to  discuss  why  the 
result  of  the  battle  of  Edward's  Ferry  was  not  different. 
To  Baker's  fame  it  is  all  right.  He  fell  in  the  cause  of 
human  liberty,  in  defense  of  the  Union,  in  defense  of  his 
country.  He  fell  with  his  ^'back  to  the  field,  his  face  to 
the  foe,"  and  long  as  Liberty  has  a  votary  on  earth,  as 
long  as  the  name  of  Washington  is  revered  among  men, 
and  his  principles  cherished  by  his  countrymen,  so  long 
will  the  name  of  Baker  be  remembered  with  gratitude 
and  admiration. 


EDWARD   DICKINSON   BAKER.  71 

No  man  who  knew  Baker,  can  doubt  the  sincerity  and 
noble  disinterestedness  of  his  attachment  to  his  political 
principles.  In  Illinois^  in  California,  against  overwhelm- 
ing numbers,  unseduced  by  the  syren  song  promising 
promotion,  he  kept  on  the  even  tenor  of  his  way. 
As  a  statesman,  he  w^as  never  suspected  in  the  days  of 
highest  party  excitement,  of  trimming  his  sails  to  catch 
the  breeze  of  popular  applause.  He  did  not  purpose  to 
embark  with  his  friends  on  the  '^  smooth  surface  of  a 
summer  sea,"  and  leave  them  when  the  winds  whistled 
and  the  billows  roared.     lie  was 

Constant  as  the  Northern  Star, 
Of  whose  true,  fixed  and  resting  quality 
There  is  no  fellow  in  the  firmament. 

In  political  contests,  when  armed  with  the  conscious- 
ness of  being  right,  as  at  the  cannon's  mouth,  he  never 
feared  to  encounter  any  adversary,  or  ever  thought  of 
consequences  to  himself.  He  went  into  political  contests 
as  he  did  to  the  field  of  battle,  where  mortal  engines 
'^  immortal  Jove's  dread  clamors  counterfeit." 

On  the  morning  of  the  fatal  21st  of  October,  1861, 
when  he  crossed  the  Potomac,  he  went  to  perform  his  du- 
ty to  the  ^Svhole  country,  of  which  he  was  a  devoted  and 
affectionate  son."  He  thought  he  was  right,  and  in  the 
path  of  duty  ;  and  I  can  imagine  as  he  stood  on  the  banks 
of  the  Potomac,  whose  rushing  waters  red  with  patriotic 
blood,  were  in  a  few  hours  to  dash  their  moaning  waves 
on  Mount  Vernon's  shore,  with  a  full  knowledge  of  the 
danger  of  death  before  him,  he  had  in  his  mind  the  noble 
thoughts  to  which  he  gave  utterance  in  the  Senate  on  the 
2d  of  January  previous.  ''Right  and  duty  are  always 
majestic  ideas.  They  march  an  invisible  guard  in  the 
van  of  all  true  progress  ;  they  animate  the  loftiest  spirit 
in  the  public  assemblies  ;  they  nerve  the  arm  of  the  war- 
rior ;  they  kindle  the  soul  of  the  statesman  and  tlie 
imagination  of  the  poet ;  they  sweeten  every  reward  ; 
they  console  every  defeat.  Sir,  they  are  of  themselves 
an  indissoluble  chain  which  binds  feeble,  erring  humanity 
to  the  eternal  throne  of  God. " 


72        REPRESENTATIVE  MEN  OF  THE  PACIFIC. 

In  private  life  he  was  most  amiable  and  affectionate. 
I  am  indebted  to  the  Rev.  Thomas  H.  Pearne  of  Port- 
land, Oregon,  who  thus  speaks  of  an  incident  which  illus- 
trates the  strength  of  his  filial  affection  and  duty.  After 
his  election  as  Senator,  he  addressed  a  letter  to  his  mother  : 

It  was  the  first  he  was  to  send  bearing  the  Senatorial  frank. 
"Who  so  fitting  a  recipient  of  that  first  letter  as  that  aged  mother? 
On  the  way  to  the  post-office  with  the  letter  in  hand,  conversing 
with  a  friend,  he  remarked  with  fond  pride,  that  his  mother,  then 
more  than  80  years  of  age,  was  a  woman  of  strong,  cultivated  mind ; 
that  she  had  often  taken  down  his  speeches  in  short-hand,  which 
she  wrote  with  elegance  and  rapidity;  that  she  was  a  beautiful 
writer,  and  that  she  still  retained  in  vigor  her  mental  faculties.  As 
the  son  Avas  transmitting  this  evidence  of  his  success  to  his  mother, 
and  recounting'  her  virtues  and  excellencies,  his  eyes  filled  with  tears, 
which  coursed  their  way  down  his  cheeks.  In  itself  the  incident 
is  trivial,  yet  it  illustrates  two  things — the  influence  of  that  strong- 
minded,  intelligent  mother  in  training  her  son  for  greatness  and 
usefulness,  and  the  generous  tide  of  sympathy  which  beat  in  his 
manly  heart. 

He  had  as  much  unworldliness  as  Goldsmith  ;  no  love 
of  filthy  lucre  ever  fovmd  a  resting-place  in  his  heart. 
For  years  I  have  known  him  well,  and  part  of  the  time 
vas  associated  with  him  in  business,  and  I  never  heard  a 
profane  word  or  irreverent  expression  from  his  lips.  He 
never  uttered  or  wrote  a  line  that  could  impair  the  celes- 
tial comfort  of  a  Christian's  hope.  As  a  man,  he  was 
possessed  of  that  most  excellent  gift,  charity,  towards  all 
who  differed  with  him  ;  he  never  indulged  in  bitterness 
of  speech  towards  political  opponents,  nor  towards  those 
who  had  done  him  personal  wrong.  I  have  never  known 
a  man  in  public  life  whose  heart  more  abounded  in  gen- 
erous philanthropy  for  all  mankind.  He  exhibited  this 
feeling  at  the  bar,  when  he  was  conscious  of  his  superi- 
ority over  a  younger  or  feebler  adversary.  He  would 
have  manifested  the  same  generosity  had  he  been  victori- 
ous in  the  last  battle  of  his  life,  and  deserved  the  eulogi- 
um  pronounced  by  him  on  Gen.  Taylor:  ^' Nor,  sir,  can 
we  forget  that  in  the  flush  of  victory,  the  gentle  heart 
stayed  the  bold  hand,  while  the  conquering  soldier  offered 
sacrifice  on  the  altar  of  pity,  amid  all  the  exultation  of 
triumph." 


EDWARD    DICKINSON   BAKER.  73 

He  had  talents  that  only  needed  cultivation  to  have 
insured  him  distinction,  as  a  poet. 

The  following  poem  is  given  as  an  illustration  of  his 
poetical  powers.  It  was  sent  from  Washington  City  to 
the  Philadelphia  Press^  (shortly  after  Col.  Baker's  death,) 
by  Col.  Forney,  with  these  comments. 

i0m  Irj}  (E0L  §afen\ 

"In  my  comments  upon  the  lamented  Colonel  Baker  I  stated 
that,  in  addition  to  his  many  other  intellectual  gifts,  he  was  a  fine 
poet — a  remark  that  was  received  by  many  with  surprise.  I  am 
permitted  to  publish  one  of  his  fugitive  pieces,  written  by  him 
twelve  years  ago,  and  now  in  possession  of  an  intimate  friend  in 
this  ciij.     Observe  how  the  last  verse  applies  to  his  fate  :" 

TO  A  WAVE. 

Dost  thou  seek  a  star  with  thy  swelling  crest, 

0  wave,  that  leavest  thy  mother's  breast? 
Dost  thou  leap  from  the  prisoned  depths  below 
In  scorn  of  their  calm  and  constant  flow? 

Or  art  thou  seeking  some  distant  land 
To  die  in  murmurs  upon  the  strand? 

Hast  thou  tales  to  tell  of  pearl-lit  deep, 
Where  the  wave-whelmed  mariner  rocks  in  sleep? 
Canst  thou  speak  of  navies  that  sunk  in  pride 
Ere  the  roll  of  their  thunder  in  echo  died? 
What  trophies,  what  banners,  are  floating  free 
In  the  shadowy  depths  of  that  silent  sea? 

It  were  vain  to  ask,  as  thou  rollest  afar, 
Of  banner,  or  mariner,  ship  or  star  ; 
It  were  vain  to  seek  in  thy  stormy  face 
Some  tale  of  the  sorrowful  past  to  trace. 
Thou  art  swelling  high,  thou  art  hashing  free, 
How  vain  are  the  questions  we  ask  of  thee  ! 

1  too  am  a  wave  on  a  stormy  sea ; 

I  too  am  a  wanderer,  driven  like  thee ; 

I  too   am  seeking  a  distant  land 

To  be  lost  and  gone  ere  I  reach  the  strand. 

For  the  land  I  seek  is  a  waveless  shore, 

And  they  who  once  reach  it  shall  wander  no  more. 

It  has  fallen  to  the  lot  of  few  men  to  be  distinguished 
at  the  bar,  in  popular  assemblies,  in  the  Senate,  and  in 
the  tented  field.  Viewed  in  this  light,  Baker's  fame  is 
the  ''tall  cliff  whose  awful  form"  overshadows  other  men 


74  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE    PACIEia 

of  his  day.  The  practice  of  the  law  sharpens  the  intel- 
lect, but  narrows  its  powers  of  comprehension.  It  had 
no  unfavorable  mfluence  on  his  genius.  The  great  Erskine, 
unrivalled  in  his  day  in  the  forum,  disappointed  the  hopes 
of  all  when  he  sat  in  Parliament.  But  Baker  was  an 
Erskine  at  the  bar  and  a  Chatham  in  the  Senate.  The 
magnificent  Burke,  whose  splendid  diction  grows  better 
by  time,  had  no  power  to  stir  men's  blood  as  Baker  had. 
Excepting  our  own  Webster,  no  man  of  modern  times  has 
been  so  successful  as  Baker  in  the  forum,  in  the  Senate,  and 
before  popular  assemblies.  I  have  already  referred  to  his 
surprising  power  in  addressing  audiences  of  literary  or 
benevolent  character.  Which  of  us  tbat  heard  or  read 
his  speech  on  the  occasion  of  celebrating  the  laying  of 
the  Atlantic  cable,  in  1858,  can  ever  forget  his  beautiful 
apostrophe  to  science  ? — 

Oil  Science,  tliou  though t-clad  leader  of  the  company  of  i)ure 
and  great  souls  that  toil  for  their  race  and  love  their  kind  ! 
Measurer  of  the  depths  of  earth  and  the  recesses  of  heaven  ! 
Apostle  of  civilization,  hand-maid  of  religion,  teacher  of  human 
equality  and  human  right,  per})etual  witness  for  the  Divine  wis- 
dom, be  ever,  as  now,  the  great  minister  of  peace !  Let  thy  starry 
brow  and  benign  front  still  gleam  in  the  van  of  progress,  brighter 
than  the  sword  of  the  conqueror,  and  welcome  as  the  light  of 
heaven. 

Who  can  forget  his  reference  on  the  same  occasion  to 
the  magniiicent  comet,  then  kindling  the  admiration  of  all 
beholders  in  its  pathway  of  celestial  glory  ? — 

"But  even  while  we  assemble  to  mark  the  deed  and  rejoice  at 
its  completion,  the  Almighty,  as  if  to  impress  us  with  our  weakness 
when  compared  with  his  j)ower,  has  set  a  new  signal  of  his  reign  in 
heaven.  If  to-night,  fellow-citizens,  you  will  look  out  from  the 
glare  of  your  illuminated  city  into  the  northwestern  heavens,  jou 
will  perceive  low  down  on  the  edge  of  the  horizon  a  bright  stranger 
pursuing  its  i^ath  across  the  sky.  Amid  the  starry  hosts  that  keep 
their  watch,  it  shines,  attended  by  a  brighter  pomji  and  followed 
by  a  broader  train.  No  living  man  has  gazed  upon  its  splendors 
before.  No  watchful  votary  of  science  has  traced  its  course  for 
nearly  ten  generations.  It  is  more  than  300  years  since  its  ap- 
proach was  visible  from  our  planet.  When  last  it  came  it  startled 
an  Emperor  on  his  throne,  and  while  the  superstition  of  his  age 
taught  him  to  perceive  in  its  presence  a  herald  and  a  doom,  his 
pride  saw  in  its  flaming  course  and  fiery  train  the  announcement 


EDWARD   DICKINSON  BAKER.  75 

that  his  own  light  was  about  to  be  extinguished.  In  common  with 
the  lowest  of  his  subjects,  he  read  omens  of  destruction  in  the 
baleful  heavens,  and  prepared  himself  for  a  fate  which  alike  awaits 
the  mightiest  and  the  meanest.  Thanks  to  the  present  condition 
of  scientific  knowledge,  we  read  the  heavens  with  a  far  clearer 
jDerception.  We  see  in  the  predicted  return  of  the  rushing,  blazing, 
comet  through  the  sky,  the  march  of  a  heavenly  messenger  along 
its  appointed  way  and  around  its  predestined  orbit.  For  300  years 
he  has  traveled  amid  the  regions  of  infinite  space.  "Lone,  wan- 
dering, but  not  lost, "  he  has  left  behind  him  shining  suns,  blazing 
stars  and  gleaming  constellations,  now  nearer  the  eternal  throne, 
and  again  on  the  confines  of  the  universe — he  returns  with  visage 
radiant  and  benign;  he  returns  with  unimpeded  march  and  un- 
obstructed way;  he  returns,  the  majestic,  swift  electric  telegraph 
of  the  Almighty,  bearing  upon  his  flaming  front  the  tidings  that 
throughout  the  universe  there  is  still  peace  and  order ;  that  amid 
the  immeasurable  dominions  of  the  Great  King,  His  rule  is  still 
perfect ;  that  suns  and  stars  and  systems  tread  their  endless  circle 
and  obey  the  eternal  law. 

Are  not  these  thoughts  rays  of  immortality  which  cast 
a  bright  halo  around  the  fame  of  Baker  ?  He  had  errors 
— what  mortal  has  not  ? — he  was  conscious  of  them,  and 
repented  of  them  in  sackcloth  and  ashes.  But  who  can 
think  of  the  early  career  of  this  foreign-born  boy,  de- 
prived by  Almighty  dispensation  of  a  father's  care  when 
a  child  of  tender  years  ;  of  his  noble  struggles  against 
poverty  ;  of  his  wonderful  acquirements  while  working 
with  his  own  hands  ;  of  his  extraordinary  attainments 
under  the  most  depressing  circumstances  on  a  western 
frontier  ;  of  his  great  virtues  in  the  domestic  relations 
of  life ;  of  his  gentle  and  charitable  heart ;  of  his  patriotic 
soul  devoted  to  his  whole  country,  full  of  fiery  zeal  in  the 
cause  of  liberty,  yet  untainted  by  the  poison  of  fanaticism 
which  corrupts  the  heart  and  clouds  the  mind  ;  above  all, 
of  his  steady,  unfaltering  devotion  to  his  country,  in 
peace  and  in  war  ;  of  his  patriotic  life  and  glorious  death 
— who  can  think  of  these,  and  refuse  to  say  with  the 
friend  now  attempting  with  tremulous  diffidence  to  weave 
a  modest  garland  around  his  brow,  in  doing  these  fair 
rites  of  tenderness — 

Adieu,  and  take  thy  praise  with  thee  to  Heaven ! 
Let  thy  errors  sleep  with  thee  in  the  grave 
But  not  remembered  in  thy  epitaph ! 


<b  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    TPIE    PACIFIC. 

A  few  weeks  after  his  election  to  the  United  States 
Senate,  in  1860,  Gen.  Baker,  while  m  route  to  Washington, 
addressed  a  very  large  mass  meeting  in  San  Francisco, 
convened  under  the  auspices  of  the  Republican  State 
Central  Committee.  His  speech  on  this  occasion  was  re- 
garded by  very  many  of  his  admirers  as  the  greatest  ef- 
fort of  his  life,  although  delivered  without  preparation. 
It  was  reported  in  full,  and  extensively  circulated  as  a 
campaign  document.  Near  the  close  of  the  speech  oc- 
curred this  impassioned  tribute  to  Freedom  ; 

"Here,  then,  long  years  ago,  I  took  my  stand  by  Freedom,  and 
where  in  youth  my  feet  were  planted,  there  my  manhood  and  my 
age  shall  march.  And,  for  one,  I  am  not  ashamed  of  Freedom. 
I  know  her  power;  I  rejoice  in  her  majesty;  I  walk  beneath  her 
banner ;  I  glory  in  her  strength.  I  have  seen  her  again  and  again 
struck  down  on  a  hundred  chosen  fields  of  battle.  I  have  seen  her 
friends  fly  from  her.  I  have  seen  her  foes  gather  around  her. 
I  have  seen  them  bind  her  to  the  stake.  I  have  seen  them  give  her 
ashes  to  the  winds,  regathering  them  again,  that  they  might  scatter 
them  yet  more  widely.  But  when  they  turned  to  exult,  I  have  seen 
her  again  meet  them,  face  to  face,  clad  in  complete  steel,  and 
brandishing  in  her  strong'  right  hand  a  flaming  sword,  red  with 
insufferable  light.  And,  therefore,  I  take  courage.  The  people 
gather  around  her  once  more.  The  Genius  of  America  will  at  last 
lead  her  sons  to  Freedom." 

We  honor  him  especially  for  the  self-immolating 
spirit  which  led  him,  like  Curtius,  to  plunge  in  the  gulf 
in  the  hope  of  saving  his  country.  He  was  not  impelled 
by  any  dream  of  wild  ambition.  ]!^ot  being  born  in  the 
Atlantic  States,  he  could  not  be  President.  He  had 
attained  the  highest  station,  in  his  opinion,  on  earth  ; 
a  station,  as  he  said,  ^'more  exalted  than  that  of  a  Roman 
Senator,  Consul,  Proconsul  or  Emperor."  He  had  ob- 
tained the  position  of  the  first  debater  in  the  Senate. 
His  friend  with  whom  he  had  played  in  childhood,  ''his 
own  familiar  friend"  with  whom  he  had  taken  sweet 
counsel,  had  become  President  of  the  United  States. 
That  friend  still  loved  him  and  rejoiced  at  his  success. 
He  could  have  passed  an  easy  and  luxurious  life  on  the 
primrose  path  of  Senatorial  dignity  and  influence.  But 
his  country  was  in  danger — he  took  no  thought  of  liim- 


EDWARD   DICKINSON   BAKER.  77 

self.  He  "loved  the  name  of  honor  more  than  he  feared 
death."  I  honor  his  memory  especially  that  notwith- 
standing his  life-long  zeal  in  the  cause  of  liberty,  he  was 
true  to  "the  Constitution  and  all  its  compromises,"  as  he 
proclaimed  again  and  again  in  his  public  addresses.  lie 
was  animated  by  no  sectional  hostility,  but  regarded  our 
Union  "as  less  a  work  of  human  prudence  than  of 
Providential  interposition."  In  the  spirit  of  a  disciple  of 
Washington,  as  a  friend  of  Webster  and  Clay,  he  said  : 

"Let  the  laws  be  maintained  and  the  Union  preserved,  at  what- 
ever cost.  By  whatever  constitutional  process,  through  whatever 
of  darkness  or  danger  there  may  be,  let  us  proceed  in  the  broad 
luminous  path  of  duty,  till  danger's  troubled  night  be  passed  and 
the  star  of  peace  returns. " 

At  the  Union  Mass  Meeting  in  New  York  City,  May 
20th,  1861,  Gen.  Baker  thus  concluded  a  speech  of  great 
eloquence  and  power : 

And  if,  from  the  far  Pacific,  a  voice  feebler  than  the  feeblest 
murmur  upon  its  shore  may  be  heard  to  give  you  courage  and  hoj)e 
in  the  contest,  that  voice  is  yours  to-day.  And  if  a  man  whose  hair 
is  gray,  who  is  well  nigh  worn  out  in  the  battle  and  toil  of  life,  may 
pledge  himself  on  such  an  occasion,  and  in  such  an  audience,  let 
me  say,  as  my  last  word,  that  when  amid  sheeted  fire  and  flame,  I 
saw  and  led  the  hosts  of  New  York  as  they  charged  in  contest  upon 
a  foreign  soil  for  the  honor  of  your  flag ;  so  again,  if  Providence 
shall  will  it,  this  feeble  hand  shall  draw  a  sword  never  yet 
dishonored — not  to  fight  for  distant  honor  in  a  foreign  land,  but  to 
fight  for  country,  for  home,  for  law,  for  government,  for  con- 
stitution, for  right,  for  freedom,  for  humanity,  and  in  the  hope  that 
the  banner  of  my  country  may  advance,  and  wheresoever  that 
banner  waves,  there  glory  may  pursue  and  freedom  be  established. 

It  would  be  unjust  to  his  memory  and  to  his  coun- 
trymen to  whom  his  memory  will  ever  be  dear,  to  omit 
to  speak  of  his  funeral  oration  over  the  dead  body  of  a 
Senator  from  California,  who  died  "tangled  in  the  mesh- 
es of  the  code  of  honor. "  I  have  read  no  effort  of  that 
character,  called  out  by  such  an  event,  so  admirable,  so 
touching,  so  worthy  the  sweet  eloquence  of  Baker. 
That  one  effort  should  crown  him  with  immortality. 
Baker  was  a  brave  man.  He  has  proved  it  often.  He 
had,  as  an  honorable  colleague  said  in  the  House  of  Rep- 


78  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

resentatives — '^  in  the  battles  of  his  country  carved  the 
evidence  of  his  devotion  to  his  government,"  and  gave 
there  proof  of  his  courage.  He  proved  it  on  the  bloody 
field  of  Cerro  Gordo,  when  he  was  praised  by  the  greatest 
of  living  soldiers  for  his  fine  behavior  and  success.  He 
has  proved  it  by  his  death.  Yet  he  knew  that  dueling 
was  a  sin.  He  knew  it  deserved  reprobation  and  was  un- 
hallowed by  any  or  all  of  the  illustrious  names  who  had 
yielded  to  its  requirements  under  the  tyranny  of  a  bar- 
barous public  opinion.  He  gave  his  unqualified  condem- 
nation to  a  code  which  offers  ''to  personal  vindictiveness 
a  life  due  only  to  a  country,  a  family  and  to  God. "  Bro- 
derick  had  many  good  qualities  that  excited  Baker's  ad- 
miration. Both  w^ere  self-made  men  ;  both  had  risen 
from  poverty  to  the  highest  position.  Let  Baker's  de- 
nunciation of  this  unchristian,  barbarous  code  be  remem- 
bered to  his  undying  honor  : 

To-day  I  renew  my  protest ;  to-day  I  utter  yours.  The  code  of 
honor  is  a  delusion  and  a  snare.  It  palters  the  hope  of  a  true 
courage  and  binds  it  at  the  feet  of  crafty  and  cruel  skill.  It 
surrounds  its  victim  with  the  pomp  and  grace  of  the  procession, 
but  leaves  him  bleeding  on  the  altar.  It  substitutes  cold  and 
deliberate  preparation  for  courageous  and  manly  impulse,  and  arms 
the  one  to  disarm  the  other.  It  may  prevent  fraud  between 
practiced  duelists — who  should  be  forever  without  its  pale — but  it 
makes  the  mere  "trick  of  the  weapon"  superior  to  the  noblest 
cause  and  the  truest  courage.  Its  picture  of  equality  is  a  lie.  It  is 
equal  in  all  the  form,  it  is  unjust  in  all  the  substance.  The  habitue 
of  arms,  the  early  training,  the  frontier  life,  the  bloody  war,  the 
sectional  custom,  the  life  of  leisure,  all  these  are  advantages  which 
no  negotiations  can  neutralize  and  no  courage  can  overcome. 

There  was  a  moral  courage  and  sublimity  in  it  that 
has  a  fadeless  lustre,  reflected   by   his   glorious  death. 
Not  far  from  each  other- 
where Ocean  tells  its  rushing  waves 
To  murmur  dirges  round  their  graves — 

these  two  distinguished  men  will  repose  in  Lone  Moun- 
tain cemetery  until  the  trump  of  the  Archangel  shall 
sound  and  ' 'summon  this  mortal  to  put  on  immortality." 
Let  their  monuments  arise  to  meet  the  eye  of  the  ocean- 
worn  exile  as  he  comes  near  this  haven  of  rest.     Let 


EDWARD   DICKINSON   BAKER.  79 

them  tell  the  traveler,  as  the  landscape  fades  from  his 
sight  on  leaving  our  gorgeous  land,  that  "the  paths  of 
glory  lead  but  to  the  grave. "  Let  parents  of  unnumber- 
ed generations  encourage  their  children  to  love  that  coun- 
try for  which  Baker  died — to  cherish  our  Government 
and  its  institutions,  which  can  thus  advance  the  humblest 
of  her  sons.  There  let  them  rest,  honored  for  their  vir- 
tues, respected  for  their  public  services,  mourned  by  thou- 
sands of  all  nations  now  present  who  will  unite  with  us 
in  saying  ; 

How  sleep  the  brave  who  sink  to  rest, 
By  all  their  country's  wishes  blest ! 
When  Spring,  with  dewy  fingers  cold, 
Eeturns  to  deck  their  hallowed  mould, 
She  there  shall  dress  a  sweeter  sod 
Than  Fancy's  feet  have  ever  trod. 

By  fairy  hands  their  knell  is  rung. 
By  forms  unseen  their  dirge  is  sung ; 
There  Honor  comes,  a  pilgrim  grey. 
To  bless  the  turf  that  wraps  their  clay ; 
And  Freedom  shall  awhile  repair 
To  dwell  a  weeping  hermit  there  ! 

Farewell,  gallant  spirit !  While  thy  death  in  trumpet 
tones  tells  us  "God  only  is  great,"  may  it  increase  our 
devotion  for  the  Omnipotent  Almighty,  who  out  of  the  dust 
could  create  such  a  being  as  thou  wast.  May  it  increase 
our  gratitude  that  our  lot  is  cast  under  a  government,  for 
whose  preservation  you  poured  out  the  best  blood  in 
your  veins.  Though  the  sad  heart-moving  words,  "earth 
to  earth,  ashes  to  ashes,  dust  to  dust,"  have  been  pro- 
nounced over  thy  earthly  remains,  yet  in  your  own  burn- 
ing words — and  what  more  ajopropriate  ornament  for  the 
bier  of  him  who  earned  the  title  of  the  "  Gray  Eagle  of  Re- 
publicanism," than  a  plume  from  his  own  wing,  a  "feather 
that  adorned  the  royal  bird  and  supported  his  flight?" — 

Your  thoughts  will  remain.  They  will  go  forward  and  conquer. 
They  are  gathering  now  into  a  stream.  They  are  spreading  into  a 
rushing,  boiling  and  bounding  river.  They  are  controlling  men's 
minds.  They  are  maturing  lives.  They  are  kindling  men's  words. 
They  are  freeing  men's  souls.  And  as  surely  as  the  great  pro- 
cession of  Heaven's  host  above  us  moves  each  in  its  appointed  place 


80  REPRESENTATIYE   MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

and  orbit,  so  surely  shall  the  j)roud  i^rinciples  of  human  right  and 
freedom  prevail. 

And  hereafter,  when  the  "  banner  of  Freedom  streams 
proudly  to  the  wind  in  honor  of  victory — when  peace 
o'er  the  world  extends  her  olive  wand" — when  the  great 
and  good  are  remembered,  you  will  not  be  forgotten. 
We  will  remember  the  man  ''of  foreign  birth  who  laid 
down  his  life  for  the  land  of  his  adoption."  When  the 
roll  is  called  of  Freedom's  great  martyrs,  your  sacrifices, 
your  fidelity  to  liberty,  will  be  remembered,  and  ten 
thousand  times  ten  thousand  patriot  tongues  shall  say  of 
you,  as  it  was  said  of  another  soldier  in  another  struggle, 
''Fallen  upon  the  field  of  honor." 

''But  the  last  word  must  be  spoken,  and  the  imperi- 
ous mandate  of  death  must  be  fulfilled.  Patriot- warrior, 
farewell !  Thus,  oh  brave  heart !  we  leave  thee  to  thy 
rest.  Thus,  surrounded  by  tens  of  thousands,  we  leave 
thee  to  the  equal  grave.  As  in  life,  no  other  voice  among 
us  so  rung  its  trumpet  tones  upon  the  ear  of  freemen,  so 
in  death  its  echoes  will  reverberate  amid  our  mountains 
and  our  valleys,  until  truth  and  valor  cease  to  appeal  to 
the  human  heart." 

^Mxm  at  §tv.  mx0^.  Mm  pwg, 

Delivered  at  the  Grave  in  Lone  Mountain  Cemetery, 
San  Francisco,  previous  to  the  Interment  of  Col. 
Baker's  Body. 

The  story  of  our  great  friend's  life  has  been  eloquent- 
ly told.  We  have  borne  him  now  to  the  home  of  the 
dead,  to  the  Cemetery  which,  after  fit  services  of  prayer, 
he  devoted  in  a  tender  and  thrilling  speech,  to  its  hallow- 
ed purposes.  In  that  address,  he  said:  ''Within  these 
grounds  public  reverence  and  gratitude  shall  build  the 
tombs  of  warriors  and  statesmen  *  *  *  who  have  given 
all  their  lives  and  their  best  thoughts  to  their  country." 
Could  he  forecast,  seven  years  ago,  any  such  fulfillment  of 
those  words  as  this  hour  reveals?  He  confessed  the  con- 
viction before  he  went  into  the  battle  which  bereaved  us, 


ED-^VARD    DICKINSON   BAKER.  81 

that  his  last  hour  was  near.  Could  any  slight  shadow  of 
his  destiny  have  been  thrown  across  his  path,  as  he  stood 
here  when  these  grounds  were  dedicated,  and  looked  over 
slopes  unfurrowed  then  by  the  plowshare  of  death? 

His  words  were  prophetic.  Yes,  warrior  and  states- 
man, wise  in  council,  graceful  and  electric  as  few  have 
been  in  speech,  ardent  and  vigorous  in  debate,  but  nobler 
than  for  all  these  qualities  by  the  devotion  which  promp- 
ted thee  to  give  more  than  thy  wisdom,  more  than  thy 
energy  and  weight  in  the  hall  of  senatorial  discussion, 
more  than  the  fervor  of  thy  tongue  and  the  fire  of  thy 
eagle  eye  in  the  great  assemblies  of  the  people — even  the 
blood  of  thy  indomitable  heart — when  thy  country  call- 
ed with  a  cry  of  peril, — we  receive  thee  with  tears  and 
pride.  We  find  thee  dearer  than  when  thou  camest  to 
speak  to  us  in  the  full  tide  of  life  and  vigor.  Thy  wounds 
through  which  th}^  life  was  poured  are  not  ''dumb 
mouths, "  but  eloquent  with  the  intense  and  perpetual 
appeal  of  thy  soul.  We  receive  thee  to  ''reverence  and 
gratitude, "  as  we  lay  thee  gently  to  thy  sleep  ;  and  we 
pledge  to  thee,  not  only  a  monument  that  shall  hold  thy 
name,  but  a  memorial  in  the  hearts  of  a  grateful  people, 
so  long  as  the  Pacific  moans  near  thy  resting-place,  and  a 
fame  eminent  among  the  heroes  of  the  Republic  so  long  as 
the  mountains  shall  feed  the  Oregon  !  The  poet  tells  us,  in 
pathetic  cadence,  that  the  paths  of  glory  lead  but  to  the 
grave.  But  this  is  true  only  in  the  superficial  sense.  It  is 
true  that  the  famous  and  the  obscure,  the  devoted  and  the 
ignoble,  "alike  await  the  inevitable  hour."  But  the  path 
of  true  glory  does  not  end  in  the  grave.  It  passes  through 
it  to  larger  opportunities  of  service.  Do  not  believe  or 
feel  that  we  are  burying  Edward  Baker.  A  great  nature 
is  a  seed.  "It  is  sown  a  natural  body  ;  it  is  raised  a  spir- 
itual body.  "  It  germinates  thus  in  this  world  as  well  as 
in  the  other.  Was  Warren  buried  when  he  fell  on  the 
field  of  a  defeat,  pierced  through  the  brain,  at  the  com- 
mencement of  the  Revolution,  by  a  bullet  that  put  the 
land  in  mourning?  No  ;  the  monument  that  has  been 
raised  where  his  blood  reddened  the  sod,  granite  though 
it  be  in  a  hundred  courses,  is  a  feeble  witness  of  the  per- 
6 


82  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF    THE   PACTFTC. 

manence  and  influence  of  his  spirit  among  the  American 
people.  He  mounted  into  literature  from  the  moment 
that  he  fell :  he  began  to  move  the  soul  of  a  great  com- 
munity ;  and  part  of  the  principle  and  enthusiasm  of 
Massachusetts  to-day  is  clue  to  his  sacrifice,  to  the  pre- 
sence of  his  spirit  as  a  power  in  the  life  of  the  State. 

Did  Montgomery  lose  his  influence  as  a  force  in  the 
Revolution  because  he  died  without  victory,  on  its  thresh- 
old, pierced  with  three  wounds,  before  Quebec?  Phil- 
adelphia was  in  tears  for  him,  as  it  has  been  for  our  hero  ; 
his  eulogies  were  uttered  by  the  most  eloquent  tongues 
of  America  and  Britain,  and  a  thrill  of  his  power  beats 
in  the  volumes  of  our  history,  and  runs  yet  through  the 
onset  of  every  Irish  brigade  beneath  the  American  ban- 
ner, which  he  planted  on  Montreal, 

Did  Lawrence  die  when  his  breath  expired  in  the  de- 
feat on  the  sea,  after  his  exclamation,  "Don't  give  up  the 
ship  !"  What  victorious  captain  in  that  naval  war  shed 
forth  such  power  ?  Plis  spirit  soared  and  touched  every 
flag  on  every  frigate,  to  make  its  red  more  commanding 
and  its  stars  flame  brighter  ;  it  went  abroad  in  songs,  and 
every  sailor  felt  him  and  feels  him  now  as  an  inspiration. 

God  is  giving  us  new  heroes  to  be  enthroned  w^ith 
those  of  the  earlier  struggles.  Before  our  greatest  vic- 
tories come,  He  gives  us,  as  in  former  years,  names  to  rally 
for,  and  examples  to  inflame  us  with  the  old  and  the  un- 
conquerable fire.  Ellsworth,  Lyon,  Winthrop,  Bakerj  our 
patriots  who  have  fallen  in  ill-success,  will  hallow  our 
new  contest,  and  exert  wider  influence  as  spirit-heroes 
than  over  their  regiments  and  battalions,  while  they  shall 
ascend  to  a  more  tender  honor  in  the  nation's  memory 
and  gratitude. 

And  other  avenues  of  service  than  those  of  the  earth 
are  opened  for  such  as  he  whom  we  are  waiting  to  lay  in 
the  tomb.  "It  is  sown  in  dishonor,  it  is  raised  in  glory, " 
saith  the  Sacred  Word.  Grod  has  higher  uses  for  such 
spirits.  In  the  Father's  house  are  many  mansions  ;  and 
Christ  hath  prepared  the  place  for  all  ranks  of  mortals  for 
whom  he  died.  The  mysteries  of  the  other  world  are  not 
revealed.     The  principles  of  judgment,  the  tests  of  accept  - 


EDWARD   DICKINSON   BAKER.  83 

ance  and  of  the  Supreme  eminence  are  unfolded.  Intel- 
lect, genius,  knowledge,  faith,  shall  be  as  nothing  before 
humility,  sacrifice,  charity.  But  in  the  uses  of  charity 
the  fiery  tongue,  the  furnished  mind,  the  unquailing  heart, 
shall  have  ample  opportunities,  and  ampler  than  here. 
Paul  goes  to  an  immense  service  still  as  an  Apostle ;  New- 
ton to  reflect  from  grander  heavens  a  vaster  light.  As 
we  shut  the  door  of  the  tomb  of  genius,  let  it  be  with 
gratitude  to  God  for  its  splendor  here,  and  with  a  hope 
for  its  future  that  swells  our  bosom,  though  its  outline  be 
dim. 

And  let  us  not  be  tempted,  in  view  of  the  sudden 
close  of  our  gifted  friend's  career,  in  any  sad  and  skeptical 
spirit,  to  say,  ''What  shadows  w^e  are,  and  what  shadows 
we  pursue!"  The  soul  is  not  a  shadow.  The  body  is. 
Genius  is  not  a  shadow.  It  is  a  substance.  Patriotism 
is  not  a  shadow.  It  is  light.  Great  purposes,  and  the 
spirit  that  counts  death  nothing  in  contrast  with  honor 
and  the  welfare  of  our  country, — these  are  the  witnesses 
that  man  is  not  a  passing  vapor,  but  an  immortal  spirit. 

Husband  and  father,  brother  and  friend.  Senator  and 
soldier,  genius  and  hero,  we  give  thee,  not  to  the  grave 
and  gloom — we  give  thee  to  God,  to  thy  place  in  the 
country's  heart,  and  to  the  great  services  that  may  await 
thee  in  the  world  of  dawn  beyond  the  sunset,  with  tears, 
with  affection,  with  gratitude,  and  with  prayer. 


MATTHEW  P.  DEADY. 

^Y    JIaI^EY    y/.    ^COTT, 
EDITOB    OF   "the    OBEGONIAN." 


The  rise  of  American  communities  and  their  forma- 
tion into  States  have  given  opportunity  for  the  growth 
and  development  of  many  of  our  most  noted  and  useful 
public  men. 

The  man  who  has  borne  a  prominent  part  in  establish- 
ing one  of  the  States  of  our  American  Union,  who  has 
been  instrumental  in  giving  direction  to  its  growth  and 
distinctiveness  to  its  character,  and  who  has  largely  as- 
sisted in  infusing  a  spirit  of  independence  and  self- 
reliance,  as  well  as  a  moral  and  practical  progressive 
energy  into  its  development — such  a  man  is  sure  of  an 
honorable  and  permanent  place  in  our  history.  All  our 
States  have  those  who  are  thus  held  in  remembrance,  and 
their  history  forms  a  large  part  of  the  general  history  of 
the  country.  To  illustrate  this,  particular  names  need 
not  be  recounted.  Every  one  who  studies  the  history 
of  the  origin  of  the  several  States,  readily  selects  the 
individuals  whose  influence  has  given  them  the  dis- 
tinguishing characteristics  which  they  as  communities 
possess. 

The  person  who  acquaints  himself  with  the  history 
of  Oregon  will  assign  to  Judge  Deady  a  leading  place 
among  those  who  are  entitled  to  be  regarded  as  the  repre- 
sentative men  of  the  Pacific  Coast.    A  residence  of  twenty 


86  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

years'  duration,  the  greater  part  of  which  has  been  spent 
in  active  participation  in  the  affairs  of  the  Territory  and 
State,  has  enabled  him  to  exert  a  remarkable  influence 
upon  the  thought,  the  habits,  the  jurisprudence,  and  the 
general  interests  of  this  rising  commonwealth.  Few  men 
have  ever  more  thoroughly  impressed  their  ideas  upon  a 
large  community  than  he  has  done.  He  came  to  Oregon 
at  a  time  when  the  various  elements  of  society,  which 
had  been  drawn  together  from  localities  separated  widely 
from  each  other  by  customs  as  well  as  by  distance,  had 
met  and  begun  to  coalesce;  and  taking  them  in  this 
transition  state,  he  has  been  largely  instrumental  in 
moulding  them  into  their  present  form.  Possessing 
many,  though  not  all,  of  the  qualities  necessary  for  a 
leading  public  character,  he  has  often  been  able  to  guide 
and  direct  where  he  has  not  had  power  to  absolutely 
control.  His  extensive  learning,  his  ready  judgment, 
his  clear  perception  of  the  whole  relations  of  a  subject, 
with  the  ability  to  state  his  opinions  in  a  consistent  and 
convincing  manner,  have  always  given  him  influence  and 
power;  and  while  he  is  lacking  in  certain  elements  of 
character  which  enable  some  men  to  achieve  a  very  high 
popularity,  he  possesses  those  solid  qualities  which  al- 
ways command  respect,  and  which,  in  general,  enable 
their  possessor  to  make  a  more  enduring  impression  upon 
the  public  thought  than  is  made  by  many  whose  praises 
are  continually  on  the  popular  tongue. 

Matthew  P.  Heady  was  born  May  12,  1824,  in  Talbot 
county,  Maryland,  nine  miles  from  Easton.  He  is  of 
Irish  and  English  extraction.  His  father  was  a  man  of 
education,  and  a  schoolmaster  by  profession.  His  parents 
were  married  in  Baltimore,  his  mother's  native  place, 
where  they  mainly  resided  until  the  year  1828,  when 
they  removed  to  Wheeling,  Yirginia.  Here  his  father 
had  charge  of  the  Lancasterian  Academy,  a  public  school 
conducted  upon  the  monitorial  system  of  the  celebrated 
English  Quaker,  Joseph  Lancaster,  and  in  this  school 
Matthew  took  his  first  lessons  in  the  ''  hornbook  and 
ferule." 

In  1833,  the  family  returned  to  Baltimore  on  a  visit. 


MATTHEW   P.    DEADY.  87 

On  the  return  to  Wheeling,  Matthew's  mother  died  and 
was  buried  in  May,  1834,  near  Burkettsville,  in  western 
Maryland.  Thenceforward,  Matthew  was  thrown  for  the 
most  part  upon  his  own  resources  and  impulses  for  his 
progress  through  the  world  and  the  direction  of  it. 
During  the  summer  of  1834,  he  attended  school  at 
Fredericktown,  Maryland.  In  the  autumn  of  the  same 
year,  he  returned  to  Baltimore  and  entered  his  grand- 
father's store,  where  he  remained  until  the  spring  of 
1836,  when  he  returned  to  his  father  in  Wheeling.  Here 
he  went  to  school,  and  was  employed  in  a  music  store 
until  1838,  when  he  removed  with  his  father  to  Belmont 
county,  Ohio.  There  he  lived  and  labored  upon  his 
father's  farm  for  about  three  years,  when  he  voluntarily 
left  home  and  went  to  Barnesville,  Ohio,  to  learn  the 
trade  of  blacksmithing.  With  the  exception  of  six 
months,  during  which  he  attended  the  Barnesville  Aca- 
demy, he  wrought  at  the  anvil  for  the  next  four  years, 
when  his  engagement  with  his  employer  closed.  During 
this  period,  he  became  a  skillful  mechanic.  Besides  the 
physical  development  and  hardiness  which  these  years 
of  wholesome  labor  gave  him,  he  obtained  at  the  same 
time  a  knowledge  of  men  and  things  in  the  practical 
affairs  of  life  which  no  amount  of  mere  school  culture 
could  have  bestowed. 

In  this  country,  where  every  man  must  make  his  own 
way  to  fortune,  and  where  ''  self-made  men,"  to  adopt  a 
trite  phrase,  are  the  only  ones  who  win  position  and  hold 
it,  the  man  whose  early  life  is  one  of  severe  struggles, 
has,  in  general,  a  great  advantage  over  those  who  might 
seem  to  be  more  favored  by  fortune.  He  who  has  accus- 
tomed himself  in  early  life  to  meet  difficulties  and  sur- 
mount them,  acquires  a  courage  and  a  steadfastness 
which  will  serve  him  better  than  any  patrimonial  estate: 
for  no  Mian,  in  a  country  like  ours,  where  competition 
is  so  great,  and  where  continued  success  depends  on  ab- 
solute merit,  can  sustain  himself  for  a  day  after  he  relaxes 
his  effort  and  loses  faith  in  himself.  In  Troilus  and 
CressickL^  Ulysses,  remonstrating  with  Achilles  for  his  in- 
activity, says; 


88  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

Perseverance,  dear  my  lord. 
Keeps  honor  bright:  To  have  done,  is  to  hang 
Quite  out  of  fashion,  like  a  rusty  mail 
In  monumental  mockery.     Take  the  instant  way; 
For  honor  travels  in  a  strait  so  narrow. 
Where  one  but  goes  abreast;  keep  then  the  path; 
For  emulation  hath  a  thousand  sons 
That  one  by  one  pursue.     If  you  give  way, 
Or  hedge  aside  from  the  direct  forthright, 
Like  to  an  entered  tide  they  all  rush  by. 
And  leave  you  hindmost. 

Grit  and  pluck  are  good  words  to  describe  the  quali- 
ties which  are  indispensable  to  every  American.  And 
there  is  nothing  which  gives  these  qualities  a  better 
development  than  the  necessity  which  compels  a  man  to 
obtain  a  practical  knowledge  of  what  labor  is,  and  causes 
him  to  commence  to  build  upon  this  solid  foundation  of 
all  human  improvement.  Most  of  our  public  men  have 
had  preparatory  discipline  in  the  school  of  labor,  and 
tliis  has  generally  been  not  the  least  valuable  part  of 
their  education  and  training  for  public  duty.  Such  a 
beginning  is  almost  necessary  to  Americanize  our  public 
men.  But  none  except  low  minds  attempt  to  make  par- 
ticular merit  of  it.  There  has  been  as  much  mean  dema- 
gogism  on  this  point  as  on  almost  any  other.  A  great 
writer  says:  ''There  is  no  qualification  for  public  place 
but  virtue  and  wisdom,  actual  or  presumptive.  Wher- 
ever they  are  found,  they  have  in  whatever  state,  condi- 
tion, profession  or  trade,  the  passport  of  Heaven  to 
human  place  and  honor.  Woe  to  the  country  that  would 
madly  and  impiously  reject  the  service  of  the  talents  and 
virtues,  civil,  military  or  religious,  that  are  given  to  grace 
and  serve  it;  woe  to  that  country,  too,  that  passing  into 
the  opposite  extreme,  considers  a  low  education,  a  mean, 
contracted  view  of  things,  a  sordid,  mercenary  occupa- 
tion, as  a  preferable  title  to  lead  and  command." 

After  his  apprenticeship  closed,  Matthew  pursued  his 
studies  in  an  academy  six  months  longer.  This  was  the 
end  of  his  school  days.  He  therefore  never  had  the 
advantages  which  a  collegiate  education  would  have  given 
him;  but  the  person  who  obtains  any  idea  of  the  extent 


MATTHEW   P.    DEADY.  89 

of  his  learning,  the  accuracy  of  his  information,  his  taste 
and  discrimination  in  literature,  and  his  knowledge  of 
matters  which  are  generally  learned  only  in  the  schools, 
would  readily  suppose  that  he  had  prepared  the  way  for 
this  culture  by  a  thorough  course  of  college  study. 

But  though  he  had  labored  patiently  and  with  a  steady 
purpose  for  several  years  in  making  himself  master  of  a 
trade,  he  did  not  pursue  it  further;  and  after  leaving 
school,  in  obedience  to  that  principle  which  attracts  so 
many  of  our  young  men  towards  literary  instead  of 
mechanical  pursuits  and  leads  them  to  commence  with 
the  study  of  the  law,  he  began  to  apply  himself  with  a 
view  of  acquiring  a  knowledge  of  that  profession.  This 
was  in  the  winter  of  1845-6,  and  he  w^as  now  twenty-one 
years  old.  While  thus  engaged,  he  had  recourse  to  that 
common  expedient  of  our  young  men  who  are  making  their 
way  in  the  world — he  taught  school.  He  continued  the 
study  of  the  law  with  William  Kennon,  Sr.,  of  St.  Clair s- 
ville,  Ohio,  since  on  the  Supreme  Bench  of  that  State. 
In  October,  1847,  he  was  admitted  to  the  bar  of  the 
Supreme  Court  of  Ohio,  and  practiced  law  in  St.  Clairs- 
ville  until  the  beginning  of  the  year  1849,  when  he  took 
the  idea  of  removing  to  Oregon.  His  old  friend.  Judge 
Kennon,  had  long  entertained  the  project  of  coming  to 
the  Yalley  of  Wallamet.  In  his  dreams,  here  was  a  spot 
^^  like  those  Hesperian  gardens  famed  of  old;"  and  he  in- 
spired those  about  him  with  his  own  enthusiasm  in  regard 
to  a  place  so  fair  and  so  romantic.  About  this  time,  the 
discovery  of  gold  in  California  set  all  the  adventurous 
spirits  of  the  country  agog  for  the  shores  of  the  Pacific. 
Several  young  men  of  St.  Clairsville  made  preparations 
for  the  western  march,  and  Mr.  Deady,  sharing  the  gene- 
ral love  for  adventure,  resolved  to  join  them.  They  set 
out  about  the  beginning  of  the  year  1849,  but  proceeded 
no  further  in  company  than  Leavenworth.  At  that  place 
Mr.  Deady  joined  a  Government  train  and  continued  with 
it  as  far  as  Fort  Kearney,  where  he  fell  in  with  a  Pay- 
master of  the  United  States  Army,  who  was  coming  over 
the  plains  with  an  escort  to  Oregon.  He  joined  this 
party  and  reached  the  Dalles,  then  the  farthest  outpost 


90  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

of  Oregon  civilization,  on  the  7th  of  November,  1849. 
His  friend,  Judge  Kennon,  who  had  first  directed  his 
mind  hither,  never  visited  Oregon.  Mr.  Deady  had  set 
out  for  '^The  West"  with  twenty  dollars  in  his  pocket; 
and  various  small  debts  which  he  was  unable  to  pay  when 
he  started,  he  discharged  with  money  which  he  earned  in 
teaching  school  during  the  winter  after  his  arrival. 

In  those  days,  the  man  who  came  to  Oregon  never 
considered  his  journey  ended  until  he  had  reached 
Oregon  city.  Following  the  general  fashion,  Mr.  Deady 
went  to  that  place,  and  after  a  few  days'  sojourn  there, 
departed  for  Yamhill  county. 

On  the  plains  near  Fort  Hall,  his  party  had  fallen  in 
w^ith  some  Yamhill  people,  and  traveled  in  company  with 
them  for  the  remainder  of  the  journey.  The  acquaint- 
ance thus  formed  was  the  means  of  leading  him  to  Ore- 
gon's historic  county,  Yamhill.  He  reached  Lafayette, 
the  capital  of  that  county,  and  then  one  of  the  principal 
towns  in  Oregon,  on  the  13th  December.  During  the 
winter,  he  had  recourse  to  the  old  employment  of  school 
teaching. 

In  1850,  he  commenced  practicing  law,  and  almost 
immediately  became  well  and  favorably  known.  At  that 
time,  and  for  several  years  thereafter,  Lafayette  w^as  an 
important  business  point;  and  Mr.  Deady  was  not  a  man 
to  go  into  such  a  community  and  remain  unknown  and 
unnoticed.  In  the  general  election  in  June  of  tliat  year, 
though  he  had  been  only  six  months  in  the  Territory,  he 
was  chosen  a  member  of  the  Lower  House  of  the  Oregon 
Legislature.  He  distinguished  himself  as  a  member  of 
the  House  Judiciary  Committee,  and  the  next  year  (1851) 
was  elected  a  member  of  the  Territorial  Council.  Here 
the  position  of  Chairman  of  the  Judiciary  Committee 
was  assigned  him.  A  special  session  of  the  Legislature 
was  held  in  July,  1852,  and  the  abilities  he  had  already 
displayed  in  that  body  caused  him  to  be  elected  President 
of  the  council.  Thus  he  became  a  "  growing  man"  from 
his  first  appearance  in  public  life ;  and  from  that  time  his 
reputation  and  influence  have  been  increasing  steadily, 
as  he   has   had  opportunities  to  make  himself  known. 


MATTHEW   P.    DEADY.  91 

Until  1853,  he  continued  to  practice  law  in  Yamhill 
county. 

He  married,  in  June,  1852,  Lucy,  eldest  daughter  of 
Robert  Henderson,  Esq.,  of  Yamhill.  Four  children 
have  been  born  to  them,  two  of  whom  are  now  living. 

In  the  spring  of  1853,  he  received  his  first  appoint- 
ment to  a  judicial  position,  being  made  an  Associate 
Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  Territory  of  Ore- 
gon. His  colleagues  on  the  bench  were  Hon.  Geo.  H. 
Williams,  Chief  Justice,  now  a  United  States  senator 
from  Oregon,  and  Hon.  Cyrus  Olney,  now  a  resident  of 
Astoria,  and  still  one  of  the  most  active  and  influential 
citizens  of  the  State. 

Judge  Deady  held  his  first  term  of  Court  at  Hills- 
boro,  Washington  county,  in  July,  1853.  That  county 
then  included  the  city  of  Portland  and  the  present 
county  of  Multnomah.  But  as  he  had  chosen  the 
Southern  Judicial  District  of  the  Territory,  comprising 
the  counties  south  of  Wallamet  Yalley,  he  soon  removed 
to  that  section.  He  took  a  land  claim  in  Douglas  county, 
ten  miles  from  Roseburg,  and  established  his  residence 
thereon.  For  the  next  five  years,  his  life  was  an  active 
and  laborious  one.  Besides  attending  to  his  official 
duties,  he  made  a  farm,  performing  a  large  part  of  the 
labor  with  his  own  hands.  As  a  considerable  portion 
of  his  time  was  necessarily  passed  in  comparative  quiet 
and  solitude,  he  had  here  a  rare  opportunity  for  reading, 
reflection,  and  study;  and  possessing  a  small,  though 
very  good  collection  of  authors  in  law,  politics,  and  lite- 
rature, he  here  gave  his  mind  its  permanent  cast,  and 
developed  that  vigor  and  breadth  of  understanding  which 
he  has  evinced  in  his  subsequent  life.  He  has  thus  fur- 
nished another  proof  of  the  fact  that  intellectual  develop- 
ment is  best  promoted  in  the  midst  of  labors  and  in  op- 
position to  difficulties.  Such  is  our  nature  that  in  order 
to  make  progress,  we  demand  resistance  and  opposition. 
'^  Difficulty,"  says  Burke,  '^  is  good  for  man." 

When  Judge  Deady  went  to  southern  Oregon,  society 
there  was  in  an  unsettled  state,  resulting  from  the  new- 
ness of  the  country,  the  migratory  character  of  the  popu- 


92  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

lation,  and  the  various  incidents  belonging  to  a  com- 
munity hitherto  almost  wholly  devoted  to  mining  and  its 
kindred  pursuits.  There  was  much  bustle  and  activity 
about  the  mines  and  in  the  principal  towns;  and  for  four 
or  live  years  there  had  been  a  steady  trade  and  inter- 
course with  the  Wallamet  Yalley  and  through  the  Umpqua 
river  with  California.  The  people  hitherto,  as  is  still  the 
case  in  similar  communities,  had  been  governed  mainly 
by  their  own  local  laws  and  regulations.  It  therefore 
devolved  on  Judge  Deady  to  settle  and  administer  the 
general  principles  of  law  among  them.  This  necessitated 
great  diligence  and  labor,  and  the  exercise  of  much  pa- 
tience. He  performed  his  duties  with  credit  to  himself 
and  advantage  to  that  portion  of  the  Territory;  and 
while  he  thus  did  much  to  give  a  consistent  and  per- 
manent form  to  the  jurisprudence  of  Oregon,  he  greatly 
enhanced  his  own  reputation,  and  grew  steadily  and 
firmly  in  the  confidence  of  those  who  knew  him. 

The  subject  of  a  State  Government  now  began  to  be 
agitated.  For  several  years  successively  it  was  submitted 
to  the  people  of  the  Territory  and  rejected  by  them ;  but  at 
length  it  was  carried,  and  at  the  general  election  in  June, 
1857,  members  were  chosen  to  meet  in  convention  for 
the  purpose  of  framing  a  constitution  to  be  submitted 
to  the  people  for  their  adoption  or  rejection.  Judge 
Deady  was  elected  a  member  of  this  convention  from 
Douglas  county.  The  members  assembled  at  Salem  in 
Au9;ust,  1857.  The  conspicuous  abilities  of  Judge  Deady 
designated  him  as  the  person  to  be  chosen  to  preside  over 
the  deliberations  of  the  convention.  He  was  therefore 
chosen  President  of  that  body,  and  took  a  leading  part 
in  framing  the  present  constitution  of  Oregon.  The 
labor  of  the  convention  was  mainly  performed  in  the 
Committee  of  the  Whole,  where  he  was  always  on  the 
floor,  participating  in  the  discussions  and  assisting  to  give 
form  to  the  constitution.  Many  parts  of  that  instrument 
were  either  suggested  by  him  or  modified  by  his  hand. 
He  procured  the  insertion  of  the  clause  in  relation  to 
suffrage,  which  requires  persons  of  foreign  birth  to 
declare  their  intention  to  become  citizens  one  year  before 


MATTHEW   P.    DEADY.  .  93 

they  are  allowed  to  vote,  a  measure  which  is  necessary 
in  every  State  to  insure  the  purity  of  elections.  Others 
wished  to  allow  the  privilege  of  suffrage  to  every  person 
of  foreign  birth  who  had  been  six  months  in  the  State, 
immediately  upon  his  declaration  of  intention  to  become 
a  citizen ;  a  policy  which  opens  a  wide  door  for  fraud,  as 
it  offers  an  inducement  to  persons  to  declare  their  inten- 
tion to  assume  citizenship  for  the  special  purpose  of 
voting,  and  puts  it  in  the  power  of  politicians  to  make 
use  of  them  on  special  occasions  to  exercise  an  undue 
influence  in  elections.  By  his  efforts,  also,  the  official 
terms  of  Justices  of  the  Supreme  Court  were  made  six 
years  instead  of  four.  In  the  convention  there  were 
those  wdio  advocated  annual  sessions  of  the  Legislature 
and  the  election  of  the  Governor  and  officers  of  the 
Administrative  Department  every  two  years.  Judge 
Deady  advocated  biennial  sessions  of  the  Legislature  and 
official  tenures  for  these  officers  of  four  years'  duration, 
and  his  views  were  adopted.  He  was  an  earnest  advo- 
cate of  those  provisions  of  the  constitution  which  secure 
the  State  against  the  creation  of  large  indebtedness,  pre- 
vent the  legislature  from  lending  the  credit  of  the  State 
to  any  corporation,  and  prohibit  counties,  cities,  and 
towns  from  subscribing  money  to  corporate  bodies,  or 
creating  excessive  liabilities.  Experience  has  shown  that 
for  an  infant  State  these  are  wholesome  restrictions.  He 
opposed  those  clauses  of  the  constitution  which  attempt 
to  prevent  the  coming  of  Chinese  and  persons  of  African 
descent  into  the  State,  holding  that  such  attempts  to 
restrict  intercourse  were  in  conflict  with  the  constitution 
of  the  United  States ;  and  it  is  proper  to  add  that  time 
has  fully  sustained  his  position.  To  present  a  statement 
of  his  w^hole  agency  in  forming  the  constitution  of  Ore- 
gon, it  would  be  necessary  to  give  a  review  of  that  en- 
tire instrument;  a  review  which  would  protract  this 
sketch  to  a  length  that  would,  perhaps,  be  tedious  to  the 
general  reader.  After  a  session  of  six  weeks,  the  conven- 
tion perfected  the  constitution,  adopted  it  as  a  whole,  sub- 
mitted it  to  the  people,  and  adjourned.  On  the  adjourn- 
ment, the  President  addressed  the  convention  as  follows : 


94  K      REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF  THE   PACIFIC. 

^^I  congratulate  you  upon  the  conclusion  of  your 
labors  in  so  short  a  time,  and  with  so  little  consequent 
expense  to  the  country.  For  myself,  while  objecting  to 
some  of  the  provisions  of  this  constitution,  and  looking 
to  changes  in  time  that  will  improve  it,  I  accept  it  as  it 
is.  In  reference  to  the  question  as  to  whether  we  are 
prepared  to  become  a  State,  I  have  not  been  so  sanguine 
as  some  individuals.  Upon  the  questions  of  numbers 
and  wealth,  I  think  we  are  amply  prepared.  But  a  coun- 
try requires  age  and  maturity  to  prepare  it  to  become  an 
independent  State  and  government.  It  is  for  the  coun- 
try to  determine  that  question.  For  myself,  I  am  willing 
to  vote  to  enter  into  this  new  form  of  government,  and 
the  best  reward  I  can  wish  you  is  that  your  constituents 
may  approve  your  labors." 

The  constitution  thus  submitted  to  the  people  was 
adopted  by  a  considerable  majority  at  the  next  regular 
election,  which  took  place  in  June,  1858. 

Judge  Deady  still  held  his  official  position  on  the 
bench  in  southern  Oregon  during  the  years  1857-68. 
At  the  general  election  in  June,  1858 — the  first  election 
held  in  Oregon  for  State  officers — he  was  chosen  without 
opposition  as  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  for  the 
Southern  District  of  the  State.  The  tender  of  this 
office  by  the  unanimous  vote  of  the  people  by  whom  his 
character  as  a  man  and  qualities  as  a  judge  were  best 
known,  was  a  very  flattering  testimonial.  He  did  not, 
however,  accept  the  position ;  for  when  the  State  was  ad- 
mitted into  the  Union  in  February,  1859,  he  was  ap- 
pointed Justice  of  the  United  States  District  Court  for 
the  District  of  Oregon.  The  interval  which  elapsed  be- 
tween the  surrender  of  his  former  position  and  the  as- 
sumption of  his  new  duties  gave  him  an  opportunity  to 
visit  the  Eastern  States.  His  tour  extended  to  Washing- 
ton and  the  principal  cities,  and  enabled  him  to  revisit 
his  old  friends  and  the  scenes  of  his  early  life.  He  re- 
turned to  Oregon  after  a  tour  of  a  few  months,  sold  his 
farm  in  the  Umpqua  Valley,  and  in  autumn  of  1860  re- 
moved to  Portland,  where  he  has  ever  since  resided. 

He  was  now  in  a  position  which  gave  his  powers  :i 


MATTHEW   P.    DEADY.  95 

higher  and  a  wider  range.  Being  released  from  the 
merely  statutory  and  mechanical  labors  which  had 
hitherto  devolved  upon  him  in  a  judicial  station,  his 
pursuits  were  now  of  a  nature  much  more  congenial  to 
his  mind.  His  new  position  brought  him  to  some  extent 
within  the  domain  of  public  and  constitutional  law;  and 
on  all  occasions  when  his  duties  have  required  him  to 
treat  these  higher  questions,  he  has  accjuitted  himself  in 
an  able  and  successful  manner.  To  the  performance  of 
the  duties  of  his  new  station,  he  brought  mature  intel- 
lectual powers,  a  mind  ripened  by  study  and  impregnated 
with  the  original  principles  of  jurisprudence,  and  a  judg- 
ment thoroughly  trained,  cultivated,  and  self-reliant. 
Besides  his  purely  legal  attainments,  he  was  well-versed 
in  the  multifarious  learning  which  can  be  made  subsidiary 
to  the  uses  of  a  man  occupying  his  position. 

In  1860,  the  Legislature  appointed  three  commission- 
ers to  prepare  a  complete  Code  of  Civil  Procedure  for 
Oregon.  One  of  these  commis^oners  declined  to  serve, 
and  Judge  Deady  was  appointed  to  act  in  his  place.  The 
other  two  commissioners  bore  but  a  small  part  in  the 
work,  which  was  performed  almost  wholly  by  Judge 
Deady.  In  1862,  the  Code  was  reported  to  the  Leg- 
islature, and  so  well  was  it  received  that  only  one  or 
two  amendments,  and  they  of  trifling  importance,  were 
made  in  the  whole  work.  The  Code  was  enacted  by  the 
Legislature,  and  still  remains,  almost  without  alteration 
from  the  form  in  which  it  was  originally  adopted,  the 
Code  of  Civil  Procedure  for  Oregon. 

At  the  session  of  1862,  the  Legislature  appointed 
Judge  Deady  to  prepare  a  Code  of  Criminal  Procedure 
for  the  State,  to  be  reported  to  the  Legislature  at  the 
next  biennial  session.  His  appointment  to  this  work 
was  a  mark  of  approbation  for  his  past  labors,  and  a  tes- 
timonial of  the  high  confidence  that  was  reposed  in  hiy 
ability  for  the  new  task.  He  prepared  the  Code,  reported 
it  to  the  Legislature,  and  it  was  passed  without  amend- 
ment. He  was  in  attendance  at  these  two  sessions  of 
the  Legislature  (1862  and  1864)  to  explain  and  settle 
any  points  which  might  be  raised  against  portions  of  his 


96  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF  THE   PACIFIC- 

work ;  and  his  success  is  attested  by  the  manner  in  which 
that  body  promptly  enacted  the  Codes  ahiiost  as  they 
came  from  his  hands.  The  preparation  of  these  two 
works  was  a  very  laborious  task.  To  ^x  upon  and  settle 
a  method  for  all  legal  proceedings,  to  make  the  work 
comprehensive  and  yet  not  redundant,  and  to  adapt  it  to 
the  wants  of  the  people  of  a  new  State  whose  business 
pursuits  and  general  interests  required  to  be  fully  con- 
sidered, was  a  labor  of  no  small  magnitude.  That  Judge 
Deady  succeeded  well  is  sufficiently  established  by  the 
fact  that  after  an  experience  of  some  years  no  material 
changes  have  been  made  in  the  Codes  as  first  reported 
by  him. 

Since  1854,  no  attempt  had  been  made  to  arrange 
and  codify  the  laws  of  Oregon.  From  that  time,  the 
laws  had  been  continually  increasing  in  bulk  and  in- 
tricacy. Each  successive  Legislature  had  enacted  such 
laws  as  real  or  imaginary  wants,  changing  purposes  or 
temporary  caprice  seemed  to  require.  Some  acts  were 
continually  undergoing  amendment ;  other  acts  and  parts 
of  acts  were  as  continually  being  repealed  and  reenacted, 
and  additions  were  steadily  making  to  the  body  of  the 
laws.  The  whole  was,  of  course,  in  great  confusion.  It 
was  extremely  difficult  to  know  what  the  law  was,  and 
the  change  from  a  Territorial  to  a  State  Government, 
with  the  attempt  to  continue  in  force  the  old  laws  under 
the  new  regime^  made  the  confusion  and  difficulty  still 
greater.  The  Legislature  resolved  to  provide  a  remedy. 
In  October,  1864,  the  Governor  was  authorized  to  appoint 
a  Commissioner  ^'  to  collect,  in  the  order  and  method  of  a 
Code,  all  the  general  laws  of  Oregon  in  force,  under  their 
appropriate  heads,  with  marginal  notes  and  references,  as 
also  a  syllabus  of  each  section  at  the  beginning  of  each 
chapter  or  title,  as  the  case  may  be,  with  a  well  digested 
alphabetical  index  of  the  whole."  As  had  been  contem- 
plated, Judge  Deady  was  appointed  to  perform  this  im- 
portant work.  It  necessitated  great  research  and  labor, 
and  employed  a  large  portion  of  his  time  for  the  space 
of  two  years.  He  personally  superintended  the  passage 
of  the  work  through  the  press,  which  added  largely  +o 


MATTHEW   P.    DEADY.  97 

the  labor  of  the  compilation.     A  brief  extract  from  the 
preface  may  be  given  here: 

'^  No  labor  has  been  spared  to  make  this  work  what 
the  Assembly  intended — a  complete  compilation  of  '  all 
the  general  laws  of  Oregon,'  arranged  ^  in  the  order  and 
method  of  a  Code.'  The  reader  may.  never  appreciate 
the  trouble  and  dijB&culty  involved  in  the  compilation,  in 
a  codified  form,  of  the  scattered  and  oft-amended  statutes 
of  the  State  and  Territory,  covering  a  period  of  ten  years 
of  almost  annual  legislation.  The  change  in  the  nomen- 
clature of  offices  and  officers,  and  the  new  distribution 
of  their  powers  and  duties,  caused  by  the  transition  from 
a  Territorial  to  a  State  Government,  made  the  labor  of 
compiling  the  statutes  of  the  former  period  almost  equal 
to  re-drafting  them." 

The  result  of  the  compiler's  labors  was  a  volume  of 
eleven  hundred  pages,  in  which  the  whole  laws  of  Oregon 
were  for  the  first  time  brought  into  an  accessible  and 
convenient  shape.  The  compilation  was  accompanied 
with  extensive  and  valuable  annotations  and  references^ 
and  the  whole  was  arranged  in  a  systematic  manner, 
making  probably  the  most  complete  volume  of  the  kind 
ever  published  on  the  Pacific  Coast.  It  does  honor  to 
the  name  of  its  compiler  and  annotator,  and  "  Deady's 
Code"  has  often  been  spoken  of  with  high  favor  and 
appreciation  in  places  remote  from  Oregon. 

For  several  years,  beginning  in  1862,  Judge  Deady 
furnished  ''  Oregon  Correspondence"  for  the  San  Fran- 
cisco Bulletin.  He  wrote  thirty  or  forty  letters  a  year,  in 
which  Oregon  affairs  and  current  topics  generally  were 
discussed  in  an  original  and  attractive  manner.  These 
letters  did  much  to  bring  Oregon  into  prominent  notice 
in  California  and  elsewhere.  A  pressure  of  official  duties 
caused  the  discontinuance  of  the  correspondence  in  186 G. 

In  February,  1867,  Judge  Deady  was  called  to  San 
Francisco  to  hold  a  term  of  the  United  States  Circuit 
Court,  in  the  absence  of  Justice  Field  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  the  United  States.  Prior  to  that  time.  Judge 
Deady  had  been  known  in  California,  but  the  bench  and 
the  bar  of  that  State,  with  few  exceptions,  had  no  per- 


98;  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

sonal  acquaintance  with  him.  The  duties  that  devolved 
on  him  in  holding  this  term  of  Court  were  of  a  very 
delicate  and  difficult  nature.  The  celebrated  McCall- 
McDowell  case  was  to  be  tried  at  this  term;  and  it  was  a 
case  which,  from  its  nature  and  the  circumstances  at- 
tending it,  had  attracted  very  wide  attention.  The  im- 
portance of  the  case,  the  interest  that  attached  to  it,  and 
the  comment  it  received,  justify  in  this  place  a  brief 
account  of  its  origin  and  of  the  trial,  together  with  a 
concise  statement  of  the  opinion  of  the  Court  and  the 
principles  on  which  that  opinion  was  founded. 

McCall  was  arrested  in  April,  1865,  in  an  interior 
county  of  California,  by  order  of  G-eneral  McDowell,  for 
publicly  rejoicing  over  the  assassination  of  President 
Lincoln.  Captain  Douglas  made  the  arrest.  The  prisoner 
was  kept  in  custody  for  a  short  time  at  Fort  Alcatraz,  and 
then  discharged.  Some  time  afterwards,  he  brought  an 
action  in  a  California  Court  for  damages  against  General 
McDowell  and  Captain  Douglas,  but  the  case  was  soon 
transferred  to  the  Circuit  Court  of  the  United  States. 
It  was  tried  without  a  jury.  The  Court  held  that  as 
Captain  Douglas  had  acted  under  the  immediate  orders 
of  General  McDowell,  he  was  protected  against  an  action 
for  damages,  and  that  General  McDowell  was  solely  re- 
sponsible. The  case  was  heard,  and  the  Court  awarded 
McCall  damages  in  the  sum  of  six  hundred  and  thirty- 
five  dollars.  These  damages  were  intended  to  be  merely 
compensatory;  and  in  rendering  the  judgment,  the  Court 
took  into  consideration  the  number  of  days  the  plaintiff 
was  under  arrest,  with  his  loss  of  time  and  expenses.  It 
was  stated  in  the  opinion,  that  the  language  of  McCall 
which  provoked  the  arrest  was  ''gross  and  incendiary," 
and/' well  calculated  at  that  moment  of  intense  public 
feeling  and  anxiety  to  have  brought  harm  upon  the  com- 
munity." Yet  the  speaking  of  the  words  "  was  not 
technically  a  crime." 

The  defence  maintained  that  the  act  of  Congress  of 
March,  1863,  authorizing  the  President  to  suspend  the 
privilege  of  the  writ  of  habeas  corpus^  and  declaring  that 
any  order  by  the  President  for  arrest  and  imprisonmoat 


MATTHEW    P.    DEADY.  99 

in  the  cases  specified  should  be  a  sufficient  defence  to 
any  action  for  prosecution,  together  with  the  Act  of  May, 
1866,  to  indemnify  all  persons  for  any  act  done  during 
the  rebellion  by  order  of  the  President  or  Secretary  of 
War,  afforded  General  McDowell  complete  defence  against 
the  prosecution.  The  plaintiff  asserted  that  these  acts 
of  Congress  were  unconstitutional  and  void,  and  therefore 
that  they  afforded  no  defence.  The  Court  held  that 
Congress  has  power  to  suspend  the  privilege  of  the  writ 
of  habeas  corpus^  and  in  an  elaborate  argument  showed 
that  the  Act  of  March,  1863,  was  constitutional  and  valid. 
The  President  was  entrusted  with  power  to  enforce  this 
act,  and  any  order  from  him  within  its  purview  would,  by 
the  terms  of  the  act,  have  been  a  good  and  sufficient 
defence  to  an  action.  But  the  Court  found  that,  as  a 
matter  of  fact,  no  order  had  been  issued  by  the  President 
to  General  McDowell  to  make  such  arrests,  and  that  the 
latter  therefore  acted  solely  on  his  own  responsibility  in 
arresting  McCall.  The  Court  accordingly  held  that  this 
arrest  did  not  come  within  the  purview  of  the  Act  of 
March,  1863,  and  that  the  proceeding  was  consequently 
without  the  sanction  of  law.  General  McDowell's  action 
was  Tiot  taken  in  obedience  to  the  orders  of  a  superior, 
and  therefore  he  could  not  plead  in  defence  the  act  of 
Congress.  '^  The  power  of  arbitrary  arrest,"  says  the 
opinion,  '4s  a  very  dangerous  one.  In  the  hands  of  im- 
proper persons,  it  would  be  liable  to  very  great  abuse. 
If  every  officer  throughout  the  United  States  during  the 
suspension  of  the  habeas  corpus  is  authorized  to  arrest  and 
imprison  whom  he  will,  (as  aiders  and  abetters)  without 
further  orders  from  the  President  or  those  to  whom  he 
has  specially  committed  such  authority,  the  state  of 
things  that  would  follow  can  better  be  imagined  than 
described." 

To  protect  the  liberty  of  the  citizen,  and  at  the  same 
time  to  take  due  care  for  the  public  safety,  is,  in  times 
of  great  civil  commotion,  like  those  through  which  we 
had  just  passed,  a  matter  of  extreme  difficulty  for  the 
persons  who  are  entrusted  with  the  civil  and  military  ad- 
ministration.   It  is  clear  to  everybody  now  that  the  arrest 


100  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OP   THE   PACIFIC. 

of  such  persons  as  McCall  for  their  expressions  of  exulta- 
tion on  the  occasion  of  the  assassination  of  President 
Lincoln,  was  not  indispensably  necessary  for  the  public 
safety ;  yet  when  those  arrests  were  made  this  fact  was 
not  known.  The  people  were  not  aware  of  the  extent 
of  the  danger,  and  in  view  of  what  had  transpired,  it  was 
natural  for  them  to  take  alarm  when  men  in  all  parts  of 
the  country  were  heard  shouting  in  exultation  because 
the  head  of  the  Government  had  been  struck  down  by 
the  hand  of  an  assassin.  That  such  persons  should,  in 
some  instances,  have  been  arrested,  is  not  a  matter  of 
surprise.  Candid  men  must  allow  that  under  all  the 
circumstances  of  that  period  of  suspense,  of  doubt,  of 
calamity,  of  sorrow  and  of  righteous  anger,  the  author- 
ities showed  singular  leniency  toward  those  who  so  far 
forgot  what  was  due  to  the  sense  of  the  country,  to  their 
own  honor  and  to  good  citizenship,  as  to  express  a  tur- 
bulent joy  at  the  perpetration  of  so  great  a  crime.  But 
the  Court  could  not  judicially  consider  these  things.  It 
found  that  utterances  like  those  which  McCall  was  proven 
to  have  made,  however  indecent  in  themselves  or  how- 
ever offensive  to  a  right-thinking  community,  did  not 
constitute  a  crime;  therefore,  the  person  using  such 
language  was  not  liable  to  arrest  or  to  legal  punishment. 
That  an  ofi&cer  who  had  simply  arrested  such  person, 
under  circumstances  like  these,  without  doing  him  other 
injury,  ought  to  be  protected  against  a  subsequent  action 
for  damages,  most  people  would  probably  think  proper 
and  just;  but  the  Court,  whose  duty  it  was  to  declare 
and  administer  the  law,  had  not  this  option.  Judge 
Deady  evidently  felt  the  weight  of  considerations  like 
these,  as  he  remarked  in  his  closing  paragraph  that, 
^'Congress  might  relieve  a  meritorious  officer  against  a 
loss  incurred  in  the  discharge  of  his  duty  to  the  public; 
but  in  this  tribunal,  whose  only  function  is  to  administer 
the  law,  the  defendant  must  be  held  liable  for  the  legal 
consequences  of  his  act." 

By  a  large  portion  of  the  California  press  and  public, 
this  opinion  was  at  the  time  very  severely  criticised. 
Others,  however,  did  it  justice,  and  recognized  the  un- 


MATTHEW   P.    DEADY.  101 

questionable  principles  of  law  on  which  it  was  founded. 
Subsequently,  it  was  generally  acknowledged  that  the 
opinion  was  based  on  legal  principles  which  could  not  be 
shaken.  The  ruling  of  the  Court  upon  the  point  relating 
to  the  responsibility  of  officers  making  such  arrests  was 
virtually  recognized  as  correct  by  an  act  of  Congress, 
passed  in  March,  1867,  declaring  that  all  officers  and 
other  persons  making  such  arrests  should  be  held,  prima 
fack^  to  have  acted  under  the  orders  of  the  President. 

At  the  same  term  of  Court,  Judge  Deady  rendered 
an  opinion  relating  to  the  law  of  copyright,  which  touches 
an  important  branch  of  that  subject,  and  strikes  a  sound 
principle  in  determining  what  sort  of  productions  ought 
to  be  protected  by  copyrights  and  patents,  for  the  use 
and  benefit  of  authors  and  inventors. 

Every  patent  and  copyright  is  in  the  nature  of  a 
monopoly,  and  the  Constitution  and  laws  of  the  United 
States  contemplate  that  privileges  like  these  shall  be 
granted  only  for  useful  purposes.  The  language  of  the 
Constitution  is  that  these  exclusive  rights  may  be  se- 
cured to  authors  and  inventors  ''  to  promote  the  progress 
of  science  and  the  useful  arts."  But  it  would  seem  that 
the  practice  has  gone  far  beyond  the  plain  intention  of 
the  Constitution,  since  this  protection  is  granted  for 
almost  every  trifle,  no  matter  how  simple  or  common. 
Every  gimcrack  is  protected  by  a  patent,  and  by  such 
protection  large  fortunes  innumerable  have  been  made; 
while  many  of  the  most  useful  discoveries  have  had  no 
protection  at  all  under  the  laws,  and  the  persons  making 
them,  unable  to  obtain  security  for  their  rights,  have 
lived  and  died  in  poverty.  The  case  considered  and  de- 
cided on  this  occasion,  grew  out  of  a  controversy  about 
two  dramatic  compositions,  or  rather  representations,  in 
San  Francisco.  It  was  claimed  that  a  certain  so-called 
dramatic  composition,  known  as  the  Black  Rook,  was  an 
imitation  or  copy  of  another  known  as  the  Black  Crook^ 
which  last  composition  had  the  priority  of  copyright. 
The  person  who  claimed  the  exclusive  right  to  exhibit 
the  Black  Crook  in  the  State  of  California  applied  for  an 
injunction  to  restrain  the  exhibition  of  the  Black  Book, 


102  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

It  was  very  clear  that  one  of  the  plays  or  spectacles  was 
a  colorable  imitation  of  the  other,  and  the  circumstances 
tended  strongly  to  show  that  the  Black  Crook  was  the 
original,  and  the  Black  Rook  the  imitation  or  copy.     It 
appeared,   however,  that  the   person   claiming  the  ex- 
clusive right  to  exhibit  the  Black  Crook  in  California  had 
no  literary  property  in  that  so-called  composition,  as  he 
was  neither  the  author,  assignee,  nor  donee.     How  he 
had  obtained  possession  of  his  copy  did  not  appear,  but 
he  could  produce  no  proof  of  legal  ownership.     There- 
fore he  could  not  enjoin  the  other  party  from  the  use  of 
the  copy  known  as  the  Black  Rook.     To  obtain  an  in-  ■ 
junction  preventing  another  from  infringing  upon  a  copy- 
right or  patent,  the  person  applying  for  such  injunction 
must  himself  have  ownership  or  property  in  the  com- 
position or  invention,  or  stand  in  the  relation  of  agent 
or  attorney  of  the  owner.     As  the  person  who  was  ex- 
hibiting the  Black  Crook  could  produce  no  evidence  of 
ownership  or  legal  interest  in  the  play,  his  application 
for  an   injunction   against   his  rivals  was  denied.     In- 
cidentally,  the   Court  remarked   that  it  was  question- 
able whether  such  productions  as  these  two  plays  were 
legally  entitled  to  copyright.     The  laws  require  of  dra- 
matic compositions  that,  to  entitle  them  to  copyright, 
they  shall  be  "  suited  for  public   representation."     As 
such  exhibitions  as  those  which  on  this  occasion  had 
carried  their  controversy  into   Court,  promote  neither 
^' the  progress  of  science  nor  the  useful  arts,"  it  would 
clearly  appear  that  it  is  not  within  the  constitutional 
power  of  Congress  to  encourage  their  production,  and 
that  they  ought  not  to  have  the  protection  of  the  law 
of  copyrights.     Both  plays  were  in  fact  little  else  than 
lascivious  spectacles ;  and  while  the  Court  did  not  pre- 
tend to  be  the  conservator  of  morals  in  this  respect — 
rightly  declaring  that  the  regulation  of  such  matters  is 
the  business  of  the  local  Legislatures — it  asserted  that 
the  protection  of  such  exhibitions  is  not  one  of  the  ob- 
jects intended  to  be  secured  under  the  Constitution  and 
laws.     This  is  a  sound  principle.    It  is  clearly  the  intent 
of  the  laws  that  exclusive  privileges  should  be  granted 


MATTHEW   P.    DEADY.  103 

to  authors  and  inventors  for  useful  purposes  only.  It 
degrades  this  high  constitutional  power  to  invoke  it  to 
protect  frivolous  discoveries  and  meretricious  exhibitions. 

In  the  Avery-Bigler  case,  which  the  Court  considered 
and  passed  upon  at  this  term,  there  was  a  general  dis- 
cussion of  the  subject  of  official  tenures  under  the  Fed- 
eral Constitution  and  laws,  and  of  the  power  to  make 
removals  from  office.  This  case  also  attracted  very  gen- 
eral attention,  not  only  in  California  but  throughout  the 
whole  country,  and  did  much  to  hasten  the  passage  of 
the  Tenure-of-Office  Act  by  Congress.  In  his  opinion, 
Judge  Deady  made  a  very  clear  exposition  of  the  con- 
stitutional principles  which  govern  appointments  and 
removals,  and  thus  elucidated  a  subject  which,  a  short 
time  afterwards,  became  a  matter  of  very  general  dis- 
cussion through  the  public  press  and  among  politicians. 

His  conduct  and  ability  on  the  bench  were  highly 
approved  by  the  able  bar  of  San  Francisco.  It  was  the 
first  time  the  members  of  that  bar  had  had  opportunity 
to  become  well  acquainted  with  him;  and  after  the  term 
had  closed,  they  testified  their  appreciation  of  his  abilities 
and  their  respect  for  his  character  in  the  following  pre- 
amble .  and  resolution,  adopted  ''at  a  meeting  of  the 
members  of  the  bar  practicing  in  the  United  States 
Courts,"  and  presented  by  the  Honorable  Thompson 
Campbell: 

Whereas,  the  Honorable  M.  P.  Deady,  United  States  District 
Judge  for  the  District  of  Oregon,  has.  by  the  allotment  of  the  United 
States  Supreme  Court,  presided  over  the  United  States  Circuit  Court 
for  the  District  of  California  during  the  present  term,  and  for  the 
first  time  been  brought  into  contact  with  the  members  of  the  Cali- 
fornia bar;  therefore  be  it 

Resolved,  That  upon  Judge  Deady's  departure  from  aniong  us 
to  return  to  his  own  District,  the  members  of  the  bar  of  California 
desire  to  express  their  thanks  to  him  for  the  cheerfulness  and  readi- 
ness which  he  has  exhibited  in  the  disposal  of  a  large  nuraber  of 
important  cases,  and  that  they  must  bear  testimony  to  the  judicial 
courtesy,  ability,  and  learning  with  which  he  has  performed  his 
judicial  duties,  and  has  won  for  himself  the  respect,  esteem,  and 
confidence  not  only  of  ourselves,  but  of  the  public. 

Thompson  Campbell,  Chairman. 
Geoege  E.  Whitney,  Secretary.      ^ 

San  Francisco,  April  26th,  1867. 


104  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Almost  the  whole  of  Judge  Deady's  time  is  now  taken 
up  with  his  official  duties.  His  labors  in  his  own  District 
have  been  steadily  increasing  for  several  years,  and  he 
devotes  himself  to  his  work  with  unceasing  application. 
He  never  contents  himself  with  a  partial  investigation 
or  exposition  of  a  subject.  During  the  last  five  years, 
he  has  written  and  published,  in  the  course  of  his  official 
duties,  elaborate  opinions  on  a  great  variety  of  legal 
subjects,  and  his  pen  is  now  extensively  employed  in  this 
way. 

He  was  called  to  San  Francisco  again  in  February, 
1868,  to  hold  another  term  of  the  United  States  Circuit 
Court.  It  will  be  sufficient  to  say  that  on  this  occasion 
he  sustained  the  reputation  he  had  before  established. 

Judge  Deady  is  a  close  observer  of  all  passing  events. 
Nothing  escapes  his  attention.  It  is  not  too  much  to 
say  that  he  is  regarded  as  an  authority  in  Oregon  affairs, 
and  that  his  opinions  on  public  questions  are  consulted 
and  treated  with  respect  by  the  people  of  his  State.  He 
never  attempted  to  acquire  the  art  of  extemporaneous 
public  speaking.  His  mental  constitution  and  habits  are 
not  such  as  would  lead  him  to  engage  in  it,  or  enable 
him  to  be  successful  before  popular  assemblages.  He  is 
too  much  like  the  man  that  Antony  professed  to  be — 
that  is,  '^a  plain,  blunt  man,"  who  '' speaks  right  on." 
He  has  no  patience  with  small  expedients  and  temporary 
fetches.  But  though  he  is  not  a  man  who  is  likely  to 
acquire  a  showy  and  noisy  popularity,  he  will  always 
command  public  respect ;  and  it  is  well,  known  to  those 
who  know  him  intimately  that  no  man  more  fully  sym- 
pathizes with  popular  progress.  In  his  estimates  of  men. 
he  is  chai-itable  and  generous,  and  for  all  young  men  he 
has  words  of  encouragement.  His  political  views  are 
thoroughly  national,  and  he  believes  with  Marshall  and 
Jackson  that  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  forms 
a  Grovernment,  and  that  it  confers  powers  enough  to  con- 
stitute and  maintain  a  nation.  His  mind  is  deeply  im- 
bued with  the  philosophy  of  history,  and  readily  seizes 
upon  the  principles  which  underlie  great  political  and 
social  movements.     His  erudition  is  not  merely  of  the 


MATTHEW   P.    DEADY.  105 

showy  kind,  but  it  is  discriminating,  far-reaching,  and 
comprehensive.  His  proper  place  is  a  judicial  position, 
and  it  may  be  truly  said  that  he  is  a  man  who  has  found 
his  ''sphere"  in  life.  All  admit  that  as  a  jurist  he 
deservedly  holds  a  high  rank.  He  has  explored  the 
original  sources  of  legal  learning,  and  traced  the  many 
streams  from  their  fountains  to  their  confluence  and  ex- 
pansion into  the  great  system  which  forms  the  body  of 
our  jurisprudence.  He  is  not  slavishly  attached  to  old 
forms;  on  the  contrary,  he  has  done  much  to  eliminate 
useless  rubbish  of  this  sort  from  the  jurisprudence  of 
Oregon.  But  he  has  a  genuine  attachment  and  even  en- 
thusiasm for  the  simple  and  liberal  spirit  of  the  element- 
ary principles  of  the  common  law.  He  has  done  much 
to  promote  a  study  of  this  system  and  inculcate  a  respect 
and  reverence  for  it.  The  tendency  of  his  mind  in  this 
regard  cannot  be  better  shown  than  by  a  paragraph  or 
two  from  an  address  delivered  by  him  in  1866  before  the 
Portland  Law  Association,  a  society  of  young  lawyers  in 
the  city  where  he  resides: 

I  urge  you  not  to  remain  satisfied  with  such  a  knowledge  as  may 
be  gleaned  from  the  modern  codes  and  practice  reports.  Now,  in 
the  freshness  and  -vigor  of  youth,  turn  your  faces  to  the  past  and  ex- 
plore the  fields  of  the  common  law.  As  you  become  conversant 
with  its  history,  imbued  with  its  spirit,  and  familiar  with  its  terms 
and  expressions,  this  will  become  a  labor  of  love,  and  a  permanent 
source  of  profit  and  delight.  It  will  enlarge  your  understandings 
and  enrich  your  minds.     Get  learning  first,  and  riches  afterwards. 

Most  of  the  great  cases,  which  have  arisen  in  the  courts  of  the 
United  States,  have  involved  piinciples  and  the  application  of  rules 
which  had  their  root  and  origin  far  back  in  the  life  of  the  common 
law.  Without  a  thorough  knowledge  and  familiarity  with  these,  the 
great  advocates,  who  won  imperishable  fame  in  the  trial  of  these 
causes,  would  have  been  comparatively  unknovvm  as  lawj^ers,  however 
great  and  commanding  their  native  ability. 

One  word  more.  Now-a-days,  it  is  the  fashion  in  some  quarters 
to  sneer  at  the  common  law,  as  a  relic  of  feudalismand  barbarism,  and 
to  point  to  the  ci^dl  law  as  the  proper  source  from  whence  to  draw 
the  jurisprudence  of  a  highly  civilized  and  refined  people.  But  I 
caution  you  to  beware  of  this  spirit,  and  be  not  persuaded  by  it.  I 
admit  that  the  civil  law  is  a  great  system,  and  the  outgrowth  of  a  great 
people.  Upon  the  subject  of  contracts  and  kindred  matters,  most 
prominent  in  a  purely  commercial  age,  it  furnishes  a  refined  and  en- 
lightened rule  of  construction  and  enforcement.    As  the  people  who 


106  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE  PACIFIC. 

have  the  common  law  for  their  inheritance,  both  in  England  and 
America,  have  become  devoted  to  commerce,  and  increased  in 
wealth  and  luxury,  they  have  gradually  enriched  their  jurispru- 
dence by  assimilations  from  the  civil  code.  But  the  law  of  the 
Roman  Empire  is  not  conducive  as  a  whole  to  the  preservation  of 
personal  freedom  and  independence.  It  knows  nothing  of  a  free 
representative  government,  in  which  the  people  are  continually 
trained  to  deliberate  upon  the  public  affairs  and  assist  in  the  admin- 
istration of  the  laws.  Its  principles,  procedure  and  spirit  are  best 
adapted  to  a  condition  of  things,  where  society  is  divided  into  an 
Emperor  and  his  subjects — the  former  having  an  unlimited  power 
of  command,  and  the  other  only  the  duty  of  blind  and  unquestion- 
ing obedience.  It  knows  no  authority  paramount  to  the  will  of  the 
prince. 

The  laws  of  a  people  react  upon  them,  and  mould  their  charac- 
ter and  opinions.  The  common  law  people — the  English  race- 
wherever  they  go,  establish  limited  governments,  with  Parliaments 
and  juries;  but  the  people  of  the  civil  law — the  Latin  race — always 
come  under  some  modification  of  the  empire,  in  which  the  will  of 
the  prince,  emperor  or  chieftain,  is  the  only  and  supreme  law. 

In  so  far,  then,  as  we  discard  the  fundamental  principles  of  the 
common  law  and  adopt  those  of  the  civil,  we  are  paving  the  way  for 
the  political  and  social  condition  of  the  Eoman  Empire,  in  the  age 
of  the  Caesars — both  good  and  bad.  Probably  this  is  the  innate 
tendency  and  inevitable  result  of  our  Republic,  with  our  diversified 
and  agglomerated  population  and  ever-widening  territory. 

But  be  this  as  it  may,  the  common  law  is  the  source  and  panoply 
of  all  those  features  of  our  system  which  distinguish  us  from  the 
subjects  of  absolute  governments,  ancient  or  modern,  either  by  mon- 
archs  or  majorities.  It  was  made  by  freemen  for  freemen,  and  so 
long  as  you  think  these  distinctions  between  it  and  the  civil  law 
worth  preserving,  you  should  cherish  it  in  private,  and  exalt  it  in 
public. 

As  a  writer,  Judge  Deady  is  ready,  correct,  and 
forcible,  and  the  power  of  his  pen  is  acknowledged  by 
all  who  are  acquainted  with  its  productions.  Nor  are  his 
best  efforts  in  composition  confined  altogether  to  the 
^^  more  weighty  matters  of  the  law."  A  single  illustra- 
tion of  his  readiness  and  spirit  as  a  writer  may  be  given. 
In  October,  1864,  he  was  attending  the  session  of  the 
Legislature,  then  engaged  in  considering  and  passing  the 
Code  of  Criminal  Procedure,  reported  by  him.  The  news 
of  the  death  of  General  Russell,  then  lately  killed  in 
battle  under  Sheridan  in  the  Shenandoah  Valley,  had 
just  reached  Salem.  Russell  before  the  war  had  been 
stationed  in  Oregon,  and  had  many  friends  and  acquaint- 


MATTHEW   P.    DEADY.  107 

ances  in  that  State.  A  member  of  the  Assembly  intro- 
duced a  series  of  resolutions  eulogistic  of  the  deceased 
and  commemorative  of  his  life  and  services.  The  resolu- 
tions were  pitched  on  a  high  key,  and  among  other  things 
the  expression  in  Measure  for  Measure^  '^  to  lie  in  cold  ob- 
struction/' was  quoted.  Some  prosy  wags  took  hold  of 
the  resolutions,  and  were  disposed  to  laugh  them  down 
as  hifalutin.  At  the  request  of  their  author,  Judge  Deady 
wrote  and  published  as  editorial  the  following  brief  article 
in  the  Daily  Statesman  of  the  6th  October.  It  is  pre- 
sented here  as  a  fair  specimen  of  his  off-hand  composi- 
tion: 

IN   MEMORIAM. 

The  Assembly  has  before  it  a  joint  resolution  to  the  memory  of 
the  late  General  Eussell,  long  commander  at  Fort  Yamhill,  and 
lately  killed  in  battle  under  Sheridan  in  the  Shenandoah  Valley.  A 
printed  copy  of  the  resolution  lies  before  us.  "We  rather  like  it. 
As  befits  the  occasion,  it  has  the  ring  of  the  trumpet  and  a  touch  of 
true  poetic  fire.  When  a  generous  people  desire  "to  honor  the 
patriot  dead,"  or  "to  encourage  their  gallant  living,"  their  language 
should  rise  above  the  prosy  platitudes  of  a  constable's  writ,  or  an 
inventory  of  goods  and  chattels.  Cold  chronology  or  genealogy 
may  properly  speak  of  George  Washington  as  an  individual  who  was 
born,  lived,  and  died  in  America,  and  came  to  be  President  of  the 
United  States.  But  the  orator,  the  poet,  and  the  painter,  seeing  in 
him  a  model  and  a  mark  for  his  countrymen  in  all  ages,  hallow  him 
by  the  power  of  genius,  and  make  him  the  "Father  of  his  Coun- 
try^" — "First  in  war,  fiirst  in  peace,  and  first  in  the  hearts  of  his 
countrymen." 

If  you  would  have  men  die  for  their  country,  remember  those 
who  thus  die.  Let  the  memorial  of  the  brave  departed  be  such  as 
to  warm  the  hearts  and  elevate  the  aspirations  of  those  who  come 
after  them.  The  dream  of  obtaining  a  monument  among  the  illus- 
trious dead  of  Westminster  Abbey  has  done  more  to  maintain  the 
dominion,  prowess,  and  prosperity  of  England  than  all  the  gold  of 
her  commerce,  twice  told  and  repeated. 

Thus  Rome  deified  the  dead  and  inspired  the  living,  until,  with 

-brave  Horatius^ 


The  captain  of  the  gate, 

a  Roman  was  ever  ready  to  sacrifice  himself  for  his  country^  ex- 
claiming: 

How  can  a  man  die  better 
Than  by  facing  fearful  odds. 

For  the  ashes  of  his  fathers. 
And  the  temples  of  his  gods  ? 


108  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

The  resolution  is  couched  in  the  language  of  eulogy,  and  so  it 
should  be.  This  is  no  time  to  stop  to  count  the  spots  on  the  sun, 
but  to  paint  the  radiant  orb  in  full  light.  Let  all  that  is  mortal 
of  our  countryman  "lie  in  cold  obstruction,"  but  let  our  memorial 
be  not  only  worthy  of  his  death  and  the  cause  he  gave  his  life  for, 
but  a  peerless  crown,  to  be  worn  again  by  the  living,  now  and  to 
come. 

Judge  Deady  is  thoroughly  an  Oregon  man.  He 
takes  pride  in  his  State,  and  believes  in  asserting  her 
dignity  and  maintaining  her  importance  as  an  independ- 
ent community.  The  subjoined  extract  from  an  article 
which  he  wrote  for  a  leading  New  England  publication 
in  the  year  1867,  furnishes  some  illustration  of  this: 

As  a  people,  we  are  much  inclined  to  be  satisfied  with  our  own 
approval,  and  are  not  disposed  to  count  or  feed  voraciously  upon  the 
applause  of  the  outside  world.  Conscious  of  being  in  the  possession 
of  the  best  country  and  climate  on  the  continent  of  America,  and 
not  wishing  to  "sell  out,"  upon  any  terms  short  of  a  billet  for  "that 
better  land,"  we  are  quite  indifferent  about  advertising  ourselves  or 
our  belongings.  Unlike  some  of  our  speculative  neighbors,  we  are 
not  at  all  anxious  to  get  rid  of  our  bargain,  or  failing  in  this,  to  in- 
duce others  to  come  forward  and  share  our  lot.  But  mistake  me  not. 
If  any  good  folk  see  proper,  without  provocation  or  temptation  upon 
our  part,  to  visit  or  migrate  to  this  modern  Goshen  of  ours,  we  will 
welcome  them  in  a  plain  way,  and  mayhap  love  and  trust  them  when 
we  have  tried  them  and  found  them  to  our  liking.  More  than  this 
our  amour  propre  will  not  allow. 

And  now,  having  offered  meet  incense  to  our  proud  provincialism, 
I  may  as  well  admit  that  lean  see  no  harm,  but  haply  some  good,  in 
giving  you  far  off  New  Englanders  an  occasional  reminder  that  our 
"  lines  are  cast  in  pleasant  places,"  and  that  here  in  the  valley  of  the 
Wallamet,  and  in  the  gorges  and  glens  of  its  two  enclosing  and  pro- 
tecting mountain  ranges,  is  growing  slowly  and  surely  the  seat  of 
future  empire  and  wealth.  Excuse  me  if  I  draw  it  mild,  and  write 
with  the  brake  hard  down.  I  dare  not  be  as  eulogistic  as  I  might. 
I  do  not  wish  to  make  you  discontented  with  your  lot.  However 
you  may  now  regret  it,  you  are  not  to  blame  because  the  Mayflower 
was  driven  by  adverse  fortune  to  land  your  amiable  ancestors  upon 
Cape  Cod,  while  this  country  might  have  been  had  for  the  taking. 
Nevertheless,  it  seems  probable  that  at  no  distant  day  the  prolific 
Paddy  will,  by  sheer  increase  of  numbers,  compel  you  frigid  people 
to  relaunch  the  ark  of  your  progenitors  and  voyage  forth  to  seek  a 
new  location  for  the  Yankee  nation.  In  such  an  event,  the  mistake 
of  the  Mayflower  may  be  corrected.  The  adventurous  Angles  and 
Northmen,  you  know,  tarried  in  the  north  of  Europe  for  generations 
before  they  found  their  final  home  on  the  island  of  Britain.  When 
your  penates  and  pumpkin  seeds  are  all  safely  on  board  and  under 


MATTHEW   P.    DEADY. 

the  hatches,  give  your  Palinurus  sailing  directions  for  the  coast  of 
Oregon.  Once  here,  where  wood  and  iron,  wool  and  water-power 
are  both  indigenous  and  inexhaustible,  you  will  find  an  admirable 
opening  for  the  use  of  your  national  talents,  both  constructive  and 
destructive. 

The  physical  constitution  of  Judge  Deady  is  remark- 
ably good.  His  figure  is  large,  well  proportioned,  and 
fully  developed.  He  is  now  in  middle  life,  and  it  may 
reasonably  be  expected  that  he  has  before  him  many 
years  more  of  activity  and  usefulness. 


JUNIPERO  SERRA. 

^F^M    THE  ^LTA   pALIFOI^NIA,    OF  pCT.     3 1ST,     1862. 


JUNIPERO  Serra,  the  founder  of  the  Missions  which 
were  the  first  settlements  of  civilized  man  in  Califor- 
nia, was  born  on  the  Island  of  Majorca,  part  of  the  king- 
dom of  Spain,  on  the  24th  of  November,  1713.  At  the 
age  of  sixteen,  he  became  a  Monk  of  the  order  of  St. 
Francis,  and  the  new  name  of  Junipero  was  then  substi- 
tuted for  his  baptismal  name  of  Miguel  Jose. 

After  entering  the  convent,  he  went  through  a  col- 
legiate course  of  study,  and  before  he  had  received  the 
degree  of  Doctor,  was  appointed  lecturer  upon  phi- 
losophy. He  became  a  noted  preacher,  and  was  frequent- 
ly invited  to  visit  the  larger  towns  of  his  native  Island 
in  that  capacity.  Junipero  was  thirty-six  years  of  age 
when  he  determined  to  become  a  missionary  in  the  New 
World.  In  1749,  he  crossed  the  ocean  in  company  with  a 
number  of  brother  Franciscan  Monks,  among  them  sev- 
eral who  afterwards  came  with  him  to  California.  He 
remained  but  a  short  time  in  the  city  of  Mexico,  and  was 
soon  sent  a  Missionary  to  the  Indians  in  the  Sierra  Madre, 
in  the  district  now  known  as  the  State  of  San  Luis 
Potosi.  He  spent  nine  years  there,  and  then  returned 
to  the  city  of  Mexico,  where  he  stayed  for  seven  years, 
in  the  convent  of  San  Fernando. 

In  1767,  when  he  was  fifty-four  years  of  age,  he  was 
appointed  to  the  charge  of  the  Missions  to  be  established 
in  Upper  California.  He  arrived  at  San  Diego  in  1769, 
and  with  the  exception  of  one  journey  to  Mexico,  he 
spent  all  the  remainder  of  his  life  here.  He  died  at  the 
Mission  of  Carmel,  near  Monterey,  on  the  28th  of  August, 
1784,  aged  seventy-one  years.     Our  knowledge  of  his 


112  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

character  is  derived  almost  exclusively  from  his  biogra- 
phy by  Palou,  who  was  also  a  native  of  Majorca,  a  broth- 
er Franciscan  Monk,  had  been  his  disciple,  came  across 
the  Atlantic  with  him,  was  his  associate  in  the  College  of 
San  Fernando,"  his  companion  in  the  expedition  to  Cal- 
ifornia, his  successor  in  the  Presidency  of  the  Mission  of 
Old  California,  his  subordinate  afterward  in  New  Califor- 
nia, his  attendant  at  his  death-bed,  and  his  nearest  friend 
for  forty  years  or  more.  Under  the  circumstances,  Palou 
had  a  right  to  record  the  life  of  his  preceptor  and  supe- 
rior. Junipero  Serra,  as  we  ascertain  his  character  di- 
rectly and  inferentially  in  his  biography,  was  a  man  to 
whom  his  religion  was  everything.  All  his  actions  were 
governed  by  the  ever  present  and  predominant  idea  that 
life  is  a  brief  probation,  trembling  between  eternal  per- 
dition on  the  one  side,  and  salvation  on  the  other.  Earth, 
for  its  own  sake,  had  no  joys  for  him.  His  soul  did  not 
recognize  this  life  as  its  home.  He  turned  with  dislike 
from  nearly  all  those  sources  of  pleasure  in  which  the 
polished  society  of  our  age  delights.  As  a  Monk  he  had, 
in  boyhood,  renounced  the  joys  of  love,  and  the  attrac- 
tions of  woman's  society.  The  conversation  of  his  own 
sex  was  not  a  source  of  amusement.  He  was  habitually 
serious.  Laughter  was  inconsistent  with  the  terrible 
responsibilities  of  this  probationary  existence.  ISTot  a 
joke  or  a  jovial  action  is  recorded  of  him.  He  delighted 
in  no  joyous  books.  Art  or  poetry  never  served  to  sharp- 
en his  wits,  lighten  his  spirits  or  solace  his  weary  mo- 
ments. The  sweet  devotional  poems  of  Fray  Luis  de 
Leon,  and  the  delicate  humor  of  Cervantes,  notwithstand- 
ing the  perfect  piety  of  both,  were  equally  strange  to  him. 
He  knew  nothing  of  the  science  and  philosophy  which 
threw  all  enlightened  nations  into  fermentation  a  hun- 
dred years  ago.  The  rights  of  man  and  the  birth  of 
chemistry  did  not  withdraw  his  fixed  gaze  from  the  other 
world,  which  formed  the  constant  subject  of  his  contem- 
plation. It  was  not  sufficient  for  him  to  abstain  from  posi- 
tive pleasure  ;  he  considered  it  his  duty  to  inflict  upon 
himself  bitter  pain.  He  ate  little,  avoided  meat  and 
wine,  preferred  fruit  and  fish,  never  complained  of  the 
quality  of  his  food,  nor  sought  to  have  it  more  savory. 


JUNIPERO   SERRA.  113 

He  often  lashed  himself  with  ropes,  sometimes  of  wire  ; 
he  was  in  the  habit  of  beating  himself  in  the  breast  with 
stones,  and  at  times  he  put  a  burning  torch  to  his  breast. 
These  things  he  did  while  preaching  or  at  the  close  of  his 
sermons,  his  purpose  being,  as  his  biographer  says,  ''not 
only  to  punish  himself,  but  also  to  move  his  auditory  to 
penitence  for  their  own  sins."  We  translate  the  follow- 
ing incident  which  occurred  during  a  sermon  which  he 
delivered  in  Mexico, — the  precise  date  and  place  are  not 
given.  Imitating  his  devout  San  Francisco  Solano,  he  drew 
out  a  chain  and  letting  his  habit  fall  below  his  shoulders, 
after  having  exhorted  his  auditory  to  penance,  he  began 
to  beat  himself  so  cruelly  that  all  the  spectators  were 
moved  to  tears,  and  one  man  rising  up  from  among  them, 
went  with  all  haste  to  the  pulpit  and  took  the  chain  from 
the  penitent  father,  came  down  with  it  to  the  platform  of 
the  presbiterio,  and  following  the  example  of  the  vener- 
able preacher,  he  bared  himself  to  the  waist  and  began  to 
do  public  penance,  saying,  with  tears  and  sobs,  ''I  am  the 
sinner,  ungrateful  to  God,  who  ought  to  do  penance  for 
my  many  sins,  and  not  the  father  who  is  a  saint."  So 
cruel  and  pitiless  were  the  blows,  that,  in  the  sight  of  all 
the  people,  he  fell  down,  they  supposing  him  to  be  dead. 
The  last  unction  and  sacrament  were  administered  to  him 
there,  and  soon  after  that  he  died.  We  may  believe  with 
pious  faith,  that  his  soul  is  enjoying  the  presence  of  God. 
Serra  and  his  biographer  did  not  receive  the  Protestant 
doctrine,  that  there  have  been  no  miracles  since  the  apos- 
tolic age.  They  imagined  that  the  power  possessed  by 
the  chief  disciples  of  Jesus  had  been  inherited  by  the 
Catholic  priests  of  their  time,  and  they  saw  wonders  where 
their  contemporary  clergymen,  like  Conyers,  Middleton, 
and  Priestly,  saw  nothing  save  natural  mistakes.  Palou 
records  the  following  story,  with  unquestioning  faith  :  — 
When  Serra  was  traveling  with  a  party  of  missionaries 
through  the  province  of  Huasteca,  in  Mexico,  many  of 
the  villagers  did  not  go  to  hear  the  word  of  God  at  the 
first  village  where  they  stopped  ;  but  scarcely  had  the 
fathers  left  the  place  when  it  was  visited  by  an  epi- 
demic, which  carried  away  sixty  villagers,  all  of  whom,  as 


114  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

the  curate  of  the  place  wrote  to  the  reverend  father  Juni- 
pero,  were  persons  who  had  not  gone  to  hear  the  mis- 
sionaries. The  rumor  of  the  epidemic  having  gone  abroad, 
the  people  in  other  villages  were  dissatisfied  with  their 
curates  for  admitting  the  missionaries  ;  but  when  they 
heard  that  only  those  died  who  did  not  listen  to  the  ser- 
mon, they  became  very  punctual,  not  only  the  villagers 
but  the  country  people  dwelling  upon  ranches  many 
leagues  distant.  Their  apostolic  labors  having  been  fin- 
ished, they  were  upon  their  way  back,  and  at  the  end  of  a 
few  days'  journey,  when  the  sun  was  about  to  set,  they 
knew  not  where  to  spend  the  night,  and  considered  it  cer- 
tain that  they  must  sleep  upon  the  open  plain.  They 
were  thinking  about  this  when  they  saw  near  the  road  a 
house,  whither  they  went  and  solicited  lodging.  They 
found  a  venerable  man,  with  his  wife  and  child,  who  re- 
ceived them  with  much  kindness  and  attention,  and  gave 
them  supper.  .  In  the  morning  the  Fathers  thanked  their 
hosts,  and  taking  leave,  pursued  their  way.  After  hav- 
ing gone  a  little  distance,  they  met  some  muleteers,  who 
asked  them  where  they  had  passed  the  night.  When  the 
place  was  described,  the  muleteers  declared  there  was  no 
house  or  ranch  near  the  road  or  within  many  leagues. 
The  missionaries  attributed  to  Divine  Providence  the 
favor  of  that  hospitality,  and  believed  without  doubt  that 
those  hosts  were  Jesus,  Mary  and  Joseph,  reflecting  not 
only  about  the  order  and  cleanness  of  the  house  (though 
poor,)  and  the  affectionate  kindness  with  which  they  had 
been  received,  but  also  about  the  extraordinary  internal 
consolation  which  their  hearts  had  felt  there.  Serra's 
religious  conviction  found  in  him  a  congenial  mental  con- 
stitution. He  was  even-tempered,  temperate,  obedient, 
zealous,  kindly  in  speech,  humble  and  quiet.  His  cowl 
covered  neither  greed,  guile,  hypocrisy,  nor  pride.  He 
had  no  quarrels  and  made  no  enemies.  He  sought  to  be 
11  monk,  and  he  was  one  in  sincerity.  Probably  few  have 
approached  nearer  to  the  ideal  perfection  of  a  monkish  life 
than  he.  Even  those  who  think  that  he  made  great  mis- 
takes of  judgment  in  regard  to  the  nature  of  existence 
and  the  duties  of  man  to  society,  must  admire  his  earn- 
est, honest  and  good  character. 


GEORGE  GORDON 


ONE  of  the  most  able  and  useful  citizens  of  California, 
from  1849  to  1869,  was  George  Gordon,  who  died  so 
recently  as  May  22d  in  the  latter  year,  aged  about  60. 
He  was  a  man  of  great  practical  sagacity  and  enterprise, 
and  joined  to  an  original  mind,  strengthened  by  varied 
culture  and  observation,  much  public  spirit  and  energy 
of  will.  Few  men  have  so  directly  contributed  to  build 
up  San  Francisco,  or  have  taken  so  large  a  share  in 
advancing  its  material  interests.  Mr.  Gordon  was  a 
Scotchman,  and  one  of  the  best  examples  of  his  vigorous, 
thoughtful  and  thrifty  race.  He  came  to  California  in 
1849,  leading  the  first  company  through  from  New  York 
by  the  Nicaragua  transit  route,  and  bringing  at  the  same 
time,  by  the  vessel  which  he  chartered,  a  cargo  of  lumber. 
He  published  a  description  of  this  route  and  his  trip, 
which  was  marked  by  his  usual  graphic  power  as  a  writer. 
On  his  arrival  in  this  city  he  immediately  engaged  in  me- 
chanical and  mercantile  pursuits.  In  1850,  he  built 
Howison's  Pier,  one  of  the  earliest  wharves.  In  1852,  he 
erected  the  first  block  of  iron  buildings,  on  Front  street, 
between  Clay  and  Washington.  In  1851,  he  had  formed 
a  partnership  with  Mr.  Steen,  and  the  firm  established  the 
third  iron  foundry  in  the  city.  Not  long  after  this  he 
bought  six  100-vara  lots  in  a  body,  bounded  by  Second, 
Third,  Bryant  and  Brannan  Streets,  and  laid  out  South 
Park,  the  first  attempt  to  establish  urban  recreation 
grounds.  It  was  not  so  successful  as  he  had  expected, 
pecuniarily,  although  it  was  eventually  surrounded    by 


116  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

buildings,  and  is  still  very  attractively  cultivated  as  a 
private  park.  In  1857,  he  founded  the  San  Francisco 
and  Pacific  Sugar  Refinery,  and  was  a  principal  owner  and 
manager  in  it  at  the  time  of  his  death.  This  enterprise 
created  a  business  which  has  since  assumed  very  large 
proportions  and  become  one  of  the  leading  manufacturing 
interests  of  the  State.  Mr.  Gordon  took  some  steps  to 
introduce  beet  sugar  making,  and  made  researches  on  the 
subject  during  a  visit  to  Europe,  which  suggested  a  series 
of  interesting  publications.  His  plan  was  abandoned 
for  some  reason,  but  the  new  industry  was  undertaken 
by  others  and  has  since  been  put  in  successful  operation. 
He  was  always  anxious  to  suggest  or  encourage  new 
industries,  and  wrote  and  spoke  frequently  in  behalf  of 
such,  displaying  much  ability  as  a  political  economist  and 
a  writer.  During  nearly  the  whole  period  of  his  active 
life  in  San  Francisco,  he  contributed,  at  frequent  inter- 
vals, to  the  leading  newspapers,  articles  over  his  own 
name,  treating  on  a  variety  of  topics  of  practical  interest, 
on  which  his  well-informed  mind  and  clear,  logical  method 
of  statement  always  threw  light.  In  reference  to  the 
once  famous  bulkhead  question,  he  wrote  a  series  of 
remarkably  able  articles.  A  powerful  effort  was  being 
made  to  give  the  improvement  and  control  of  the  whole 
city  front  into  the  hands  of  a  few  individuals,  and  the 
impolicy  of  this  proposition  was  strikingly  shown  by  the 
facts  and  arguments  of  Mr.  Grordon.  In  1859,  he  wrote 
a  series  of  articles  relative  to  taxing  mortgages,  which 
were  admitted  to  be  the  ablest  publications  on  that  sub- 
ject. He  also  furnished  to  the  press  many  valuable 
communications  on  the  subject  of  street  grades,  advanc- 
ing views  of  controlling  force.  On  the  occurrence  of  the 
great  earthquake,  in  October,  1868,  he  published  a  plan 
of  building  for  protection  against  such  shocks,  which  was 
the  most  striking  and  practicable  of  all  the  suggestions 
on  that  subject,  and  which  has  in  some  instances  been 
adopted  by  builders.  He  took  a  leading  part  in  organiz- 
ing the  Earthquake  Committee,  which  has  been  engaged 
for  some  months  past  in  investigating  the  phenomena 
and  effects  of  earthquakes,  and  the  methods  of  protective 


GEORGE    GORDON.  117 

architecture.  He  would  have  framed  the  report  of  this 
Committee  but  for  his  sickness  and  death.  The  loss  of 
such  a  suggestive  and  earnest  mind  to  a  young  State  was 
justly  regarded  as  an  unusual  one,  and  caused  a  feeling 
of  profound  regret  throughout  the  city,  where  he  was 
best  known  and  appreciated.  The  Chamber  of  Commerce, 
of  which  he  was  an  active  and  influential  member,  did 
honor  to  his  memory  in  a  series  of  resolutions  aptly 
characterizing"  his  merits,  and  attended  his  funeral  in  a 
body.  The  British  Benevolent  and  St.  Andrew's  Socie- 
ties, of  which  he  was  also  a  member,  gave  similar  evidences 
of  esteem.  Two  hundred  and  fifty  of  his  workmen  passed 
resolutions  of  respect,  and  joined  the  long  procession  of 
dignitaries  and  citizens  that  followed  him  to  his  grave. 
He  belonged  to  the  same  class  of  creating  and  leading 
minds  as  Wilson  Flint  and  Capt.  Osborn,  who  went  before 
him.  Like  them,  he  was  interested  in  everything  likely 
to  promote  the  manufacturing,  commercial  and  agricul- 
tural interests  of  the  State,  and  applied  his  fortune  and 
his  pen  liberally  in  the  direction  of  his  opinions.  As 
was  said  of  him  by  R.  B.  Swain,  at  the  Chamber  of 
Commerce  meeting,  he  combined  the  qualities  of  a  suc- 
cessful business  man  with  high  attainments  in  literature, 
a  rare  mechanical  skill,  a  cultivated  taste  in  art,  and  a 
general  knowledge  of  science.  With  a  disposition  to 
theorize  and  suggest,  he  yet  had  the  capacity  to  apply 
practically  his  theories  and  the  disposition  to  work  out 
his  ideas.  Indeed,  he  was  too  hard  a  worker,  and  laid 
the  foundations  of  the  disease  which  carried  him  off  by 
excessive  labor  and  application. 

fmavfes  fit  ^mp  ^axAm, 

At  the  Oriental  Hotel,  San  Francisco,  upon  the  occasion 
OF  the  Celebrating  of  the  Centennial  Anniversary  of 
THE  Birth-day  of  Robert  Burns. 

This  day  one  hundred  years  ago,  a  small  house  stood 
on  the  roadside  near  the  town  of  Ayre  ;  it  was  in  a  newly 
planted  market  garden  of  some  six  or  seven  acres;  the 


118  REPRESENTRTIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

land  was  leased  by  a  thrifty,  hard  working,  newly  mar- 
ried, north  Scotsman.  The  humble  cottage  had  been 
built  by  his  own  hands;  love  and  poverty  furnished  it, 
and  in  it,  one  day,  a  century  ago,  the  young  wife  bore 
the  gardener  a  son.  To  her  side  the  rustic  mother  fond- 
ly nestled  her  first  born,  and  the  grave  husbandman  with 
love  and  pride  bent  over  them  both;  few  things  could 
have  increased  their  pleasure.  But  little  did  they  think 
that  when  a  hundred  years  had  passed,  that  day,  that 
cottage,  and  they  themselves,  would  be  celebrated  all 
over  the  world,  because  of  that  new  born  boy.  Yes,  so 
it  is:  that  day  was  January  25th,  1759.  The  boy  was 
Robert  Burns,  the  peasant  poet  of  Scotland,  the  chief 
bard  of  a  land  of  song. 

The  father  of  the  boy  appears  to  have  been  one  of  a 
class  of  which  our  country  is  justly  proud.  A  man  of 
tireless  industry,  unwearied  perseverance,  inflexible  integ- 
rity, independent  in  spirit,  with  a  heart  deeply  devotional 
before  his  Maker,  though  perhaps  not  abounding  in  char- 
ity in  matters  of  opinion,  economical  almost  to  parsimony 
of  comforts  to  himself,  but  liberal  almost  beyond  his 
means  to  educate  his  children.  He  was  poor  even,  for  a 
small  Scottish  farmer  of  those  days.  As  his  family  in- 
creased, he  took  a  farm  at  a  rent  of  £40  a  year.  ''It  was 
the  very  poorest  soil,"  says  Gilbert  Burns,  ''I  know  of  in 
a  state  of  cultivation."  He  was  not  successful.  Adver- 
sity, like  a  black  shadow,  followed  the  good  man's  steps 
— followed  his  young  brood  on  to  the  sterile  farm.  The 
crops  failed,  the  cattle  died.  The  dark  night  was  upon 
him  and  his  little  ones.  I  know  nothing  more  touching 
than  the  recital  of  Gilbert  Burns.  ''To  the  bufietings  of 
misfortune  we  could  only  oppose  hard  labor  and  the  most 
rigid  economy.  We  lived  sparingly.  For  several  years 
butchers'  meat  was  a  stranger  in  the  house.  Every 
member  of  the  family  worked  on  the  farm  to  the  utmost 
of  their  strength.  My  brother  (our  poet)  at  the  age  of 
thirteen,  assisted  to  thresh  the  crop,  and  at  fifteen  was 
principal  laborer  on  the  farm;  for  we  had  no  hired  ser- 
vant, male  or  female.  The  anguish  of  mind  we  felt  at 
our  tender  years,  under  these  straits  and  difficulties,  was 


GEORGE   GORDON.  119 

very  great."  And  Robert  says,  in  a  letter  to  Dr.  Moore, 
"My  father's  master  died,  and  we  fell  into  the  hands  of  a 
factor  ;  my  indignation  yet  boils  at  the  scoundrel's 
insolent  threatening  letters,  which  used  to  set  us  all  in 
tears." 

Brave  old  father,  brave  boys!  they  toiled  well  and  no- 
bly— but  it  was  bitter  toil ;  and  hard  struggles  had  they 
to  bar  the  door  on  the  wolf  that  snarled  at  their  lintels 
for  many  a  year ;  begrudging  them  the  poor  morsels  that 
kept  soul  and  body  together,  and  the  few  clothes  that 
covered  them.  After  awhile  the  old  man  took  another 
farm,  on  which  the  family  seems  to  have  done  better;  but 
after  several  years,  having  no  written  lease,  a  dispute 
arose  with  the  owner,  which  resulted  in  the  ruin  of  the 
occupant.  The  old  man  lived  to  know  he  was  ruined: 
but  he  escaped  the  consequent  execution.  Death  shel- 
tered him. 

Such  were  the  scenes  amongst  which  the  youthful 
poet  first  felt  within  him  the  stirrings  of  the  mighty 
spirit  which  "wakes  to  ecstacy  the  living  lyre."  Hardly 
fed — for  even  at  twenty-two,  when  his  condition  had  im- 
proved, and  he  had  so  risen  in  the  world  as  to  be  learning 
a  trade  as  a  flax  dresser,  we  find  him  lodging  at  a  shill- 
ing a  week,  and  writing  to  his  father  to  say  "that  his 
meal  was  nearly  out."  We  have  no  doubt  porridge  and 
oat  cake  formed  the  staples  of  his  banquets.  Poorly 
clothed — for  when  on  the  farm  he  speaks  of  his  "clout- 
erly  ploughboy  carcase,  bare  at  both  extremes  in  all 
weathers," — head  regardless  of  bonnet,  feet  disdainful  of 
sho«s — with  but  few  books,  and  not  more  than  a  sound 
country  education,  and  borne  down  by  continual  poverty; 
we  cannot  but  wonder  how  first  was  kindJed  within  him 
that  glorious  fervor  of  feeling,  which,  after  smouldering 
in  his  bosom  for  awhile,  burst  out  in  strains  of  a  pathos 
so  sweet,  a  humor  so  exquisite,  of  a  spirit  so  fiery,  so  in- 
spiring and  exuberant — free  as  the  wind  sweeping  through 
his  native  heather,  tender  as  twilight  of  the  summer  eve. 
What  fed  the  passionate  emotions  of  his  soul,  and  gave 
them  that  overmastering  strength  which  in  after  years 
developed  itself  in  deathless  song?     Whence  came  that 


120  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

tumultuous  love  of  his^  that  soft  well-spring  of  gentleness, 
that  delicate  glow  of  fancy,  that  high  range  of  thought, 
that  buoyant  wealth  of  fun,  that  instant  perception  of 
the  beautiful,  the  ludicrous,  the  sombre  and  the  grand; 
and  that  wondrous  power  of  change,  which  sent  every 
varying  sensation  and  perception  sweeping  through  his 
mind — from  whence  he  scattered  them,  like  showers  of 
diamond  dust,  through  his  poems  ? 

Whence  came  they?  Ask  of  Him  who  made  the  dia- 
mond and  the  sandstone — the  gorgeous  flower  and  the 
humble  grass — the  stars  and  the  clouds.  It  was  as  if  the 
Espiritu  Santu  of  the  torrid  zone,  magnificent  in  foliage, 
and  superb  in  its  flower  with  the  dovelike  petal,  had 
been  transplanted  to  the  miserable  northern  soil  of  that 
hungry  farm,  and  had  there  taken  strange  root,  and  be- 
come invigorated  and  imbued  by  northern  force  and 
freedom,  had  been  fed  and  not  killed  by  their  stormy 
blasts;  and  while  it  retained  the  luxuriance  and  bloom 
of  its  native  tropics,  caught  the  rugged  strength  and  en- 
ergy of  its  new  home,  growing  amongst  its  bleak  rocks 
and  on  its  thin  soil  a  thing  of  power  and  beauty — a  liv- 
ing exponent  of  the  deep  and  passionate  impulses  which 
slumber  in  the  grave  and  practical  hearts  of  Scotland. 

From  the  age  of  sixteen  until  his  twenty-sixth  year, 
when  his  first  volume  was  published  under  the  modest 
title  of  ^' Poems  Chiefly  Scottish,"  we  find  him  with  hardy 
industry  turning  his  hand  to  various  labor;  the  plow, 
the  scythe  and  the  flail,  at  which  he  had  few  equals  and 
feared  no  competitors,  always  stood  between  him  and 
want.  His  leisure,  he  intended  to  devote  with  hearty 
good  will  to  the  acquisition  of  useful  information  ;  but 
his  practical  resolutions  were  forever  upset,  by  the  way- 
ward impulses  of  the  imprisoned  spirit  within  him. 
Worldly  motives  prompted  him  to  walk  steadily  in  paths 
of  routine  ;  but  he  was  irresistibly  lifted  off  his  feet  by 
the  wings  of  song,  which  were  unconsciously  growing 
out  of  his  soul.  Prudence  called  him  to  the  affairs  of 
life — inspiration  swept  him  into  the  regions  of  imagina- 
tion. There  was  a  continual  struggle  between  his  sense 
of  duty  and  an  overwhelming  effluence  which  flooded  his 


GEORGE    GORDON.  121 

mind.  He  walked  through  a  bleak,  sterile  glen  ;  hard 
toiling,  poorly  fed,  scantily  clothed  ;  with  clouds  lower- 
ing above  him,  and  chilly  blasts  around  him,  but  all 
ablaze  within.  The  light  would  burst  through  •  and  it 
illumed  the  cold  glen,  and  gilded  the  rocks,  and  set  the 
very  clouds  aglow. 

During  these  years,  Burns  was  frequently  subject  to 
fits  of  profound  melancholy.  This  phenomenon  is  a  very 
usual  accompaniment  of  the  northern  imagination.  It  is 
the  mist  which  ever  and  anon  envelopes  the  rugged  grand- 
eur of  its  form — the  relapse  consequent  upon  states  of 
high  mental  exhilaration — the  harp,  unstrung  after  it  has 
been  intensely  strained,  and  widely  swept.  Whether 
this  melancholy  was  a  consequence,  or  a  cause,  of  the 
exquisite  tenderness  of  the  muse  of  Burns,  we  will  not 
inquire  ;  but  they  were  intimately  connected.  As  the 
mist  condenses,  and  waters  the  grass  and  floAvers  on  the 
mountain  side,  softening  and  freshening  their  beauty  ; 
the  melancholy  of  the  poet  bathes  the  imagery  of  his 
songs  with  touching  grace  and  gentleness.  These  dark 
spells  give  the  minstrelsy  of  Burns  that  intermittent 
character,  which  distinguishes  innate  and  heaven-bestowed 
genius  from  mere  educational  and  acquired  dexterity. 
They  come  like  mighty  frosts,  congealing  the  outward 
issues  of  his  song,  but  leaving  the  hidden  springs  open. 
The  visible  current  disappears,  but  the  waters  accumu- 
late within.  By  and  by,  something  occurs  which  sets 
them  seething  as  in  a  cauldron.  His  passions  as  he  him- 
self says,  would  rage  like  so  many  devils,  until  they 
found  vent  in  song.  Internal  heat  thaws  the  mute  and 
frozen  channels,  and  away  dart  the  pent-up  waters,  spark- 
ling and  alive  ;  dashing  with  vivid  force  and  glistening 
with  every  color  under  heaven. 

About  his  twenty-sixth  year,  he  collected  and  pub- 
lished his  first  volume  of  poems,  which  left  him  a  moder- 
ate profit,  but  did  not  improve  his  circumstances.  He 
became  very  poor — ^'Hungry  ruin  had  him  in  the  wind" 
— and  despairing  of  better  days  at  home,  had  all  but  em- 
barked to  the  West  Indies  as  overseer  of  an  estate  there. 
Fortunately  his  friends  interposed,  and  he  was  enabled  to 


122  REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

visit  Edinburgh,  where  his  fame  amongst  the  reading  cir- 
cles had  preceded  him.  Here  he  got  amongst  ''souls  of 
a  finer  mould/'  published  a  second  edition  of  his  poems, 
took  a  tour  through  some  portions  of  Scotland,  and  after 
six  months  of  absence,  invested  with  a  growing  fame, 
and  a  good  deal  improved  in  a  pecuniary  sense,  he  return- 
ed home  to  his  mother  and  sisters,  at  Mossgiel,  to  bless 
them  with  his  little  affluence,  and  make  them  happy  in 
his  honorable  renown. 

There  is  a  fine  moral  beauty  in  the  faithful  tenderness 
displayed  by  Burns  to  his  mother  and  family.  The  in- 
cense of  the  world  did  not  intoxicate  him.  His  head 
turned  to  his  old  home.  He  lighted  it  with  his  fame,  and 
succored  it  with  his  savings.  Let  us  imitate  our  national 
bard,  and  aye  think  of  the  old  home  !  If,  in  the  race  of 
life,  we  have  won  worldly  gear,  let  us  share  our  blessings 
with  those  loving  hearts  who  tenderly  nourished  us  when 
we  had  none  but  them  to  shield  our  helplessness.  Kow 
has  come  the  day  of  reciprocation.  Now  debtors,  we 
can  discharge  in  part  that  early  debt,  to  which  we  owe 
our  being  and  our  success,  with  its  long  arrear  of  interest. 
Now  men,  rejoicing  in  our  strength,  let  us  be  all  the  world 
to  those  dear  hearts,  who  were  once  all  the  world  to  us  ; 
and  sanctify  our  manhood  with  our  earliest  loves.  Let  us 
not  forget ;  lest  when  we  are  old  and  feeble,  our  own 
loved  little  ones,  working  out  the  justice  of  God,  leave  us 
forsaken.  If  we  can  mingle  our  love  and  our  abundance 
on  the  modest  altars  of  our  boyhood's  hearth,  and  be 
high  priests  there  and  manly  ministrants,  there  is  noth- 
ing in  this  world  and  haply  but  little  in  the  next,  from 
which  the  incense  of  so  pure  a  joy  shall  rise. 

We,  in  distant  California,  glory  in  Burns.  Let  us  do 
as  he  did.  Let  us  not  be  niggard  of  loving  letters  to 
those  who  never  begrudged  loving  words  to  us.  What  if 
we  have  to  forego  some  festive  scene,  or  burn  some  mid- 
night oil ;  are  there  not  those  who  have  forborne  pleasures 
for  us,  upon  whose  tired  faces  for  our  sakes  the  watcher's 
rushlight  has  shed  its  pallid  rays?  Nor  let  letters  con- 
tent us.  Let  substantial  mementoes  of  our  love  adorn 
our  early  homes,   little  or  much  as  we  can — but  always 


GEORGE  GORDON.  123 

something.  Haply  the  few  dollars,  or  the  few  hundreds, 
though  little  to  us,  would  be  mickle  to  ours.  The  fire 
might  burn  more  cheery  ;  the  winter's  cold  more  cosily 
be  shut  out :  the  summer  sun  more  pleasantly  enjoyed 
because  of  our  care.  The  mere  money  would  be  the  least 
joy.  There  would  be  a  lustre  about  every  poor  guinea 
not  born  of  gold.  The  real  sterling  would  not  be  that  of 
the  marts  of  commerce.  It  would  be  recoined  money, 
stamped  and  burnished  in  the  mint  of  a  son  or  brother's 
love.  It  will  fill  their  little  purses  and  their  big  hearts 
at  the  same  moment,  because  "our  Rab  sent  it." 

Burns,  after  his  return  home,  made  another  tour  ;  we 
find  him  with  an  easy,  natural  grace  and  nobleness,  visit- 
ing the  eminent,  the  wealthy  and  the  titled.  The  Duke 
of  Athol,  the  Dutchess  of  Gordon,  the  Earl  of  Glencairn, 
honored  themselves  by  inviting  him  as  their  guest.  After 
six  more  busy  and  eventful  months,  during  which  he  set- 
tled with  publishers,  and  found  himself  master  of  the  im- 
posing sum  of  £500,  and  a  constantly  gathering  fame,  he 
returned  home  once  more — gave  his  brother  Gilbert  a 
share  of  his  riches,  and  with  the  rest  started  in  life  as  a 
farmer  at  Ellisland,  with  a  reversionary  interest  of  a  place 
in  the  excise  ;  a  thing  which  undoubtedly  did  him  much 
mischief. 

At  this  time  he  married  the  object  of  his  early  and 
continued  love.  He  had  become  famous  and  compara- 
tively rich,  since  he  first  loved  the  humble  peasant  girl 
whom  he  married.  Highborn  beauty  had  smiled  on  him, 
and  no  doubt  lit  up  many  a  temporary  flame  in  his  tin- 
dery composition.  Wealth  and  refinement  had  courted 
him  ;  and  he  was  not  a  spirit  to  be  insensible  to  their 
blandishments.  But  his  generous  and  real  heart  turns  to 
his  early  love,  with  a  faith  that  had  not  quailed  before 
frowns  of  poverty,  which  comparative  ajffluence  could  not 
shake,  and  which  the  syren  song  and  brilliant  future  of 
fame  could  not  seduce.  So  should  it  be  !  His  is  a  das- 
tard heart,  which  would  plight  his  troth  to  some  loving 
being  ere  he  goes  forth  on  the  crusade  of  life  ;  but  would 
belie  its  vow  should  he  return  laden  with  spoils.  The 
Muse  of  Burns  still  continued  to  pour  out,  with  a  more  or 


124  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

less  abundance  her  lyric  strains.  He  caught  his  inspira- 
tion in  the  walks  of  daily  life,  amongst  his  own  class, 
and  from  the  nature  in  which  he  lived  and  had  his  being. 
The  wings  on  which  he  soared  were  love  and  humor  ;  his 
flights  were  through  the  free  air,  and  were  guided  by  a  fine 
moral  sense.  He  was  not  sublime  ;  but  beyond  any  poet, 
he  comes  home  to  the  heart,  he  leads  us  into  the  quiet 
sunlight.  The  sweet  smell  of  nature  salutes  us,  and  the 
fresh  dew  hangs  trembling  on  his  leaves  and  flowers.  By 
the  rippling  streams,  on  banks  and  braes  and  heathery 
knolls,  in  the  green  dell  and  along  the  moorland  edge,  he 
takes  us.  Sometimes  his  spirit  apostrophises  the  storm, 
as  it  sways  the  lofty  pine,  and  sweeps  through  the  forest 
with  a  mighty  sigh  ;  but  generally  it  bathes  in  its  tender 
light  something  that  he  can  love.  His  pet  sheep,  poor 
Maillie,  receives  him  ^'wi' her  kindly  bleat;"  his  auld 
mare,  Maggie,  getting  a  new  year  feed  of  corn  ;  the  little 
mousie  rinnin'  from  her  desolated  nest  in  the  stubble  ;  the 
^'  daisy,  wee  modest  crimson  tippit  flower" — all  come  in 
for  a  share  of  his  glowing  kindness.  He  lifts  the  latch  of 
a  theekitt  cottage.  His  eye  beams  on  the  patriarchal  sire, 
the  kindly  wife  and  mother,  the  blazing  ingle,  and  the 
open  Bible.  He  watches  the  bairns  as  they  come  drop- 
ping in  ''Frae  service  out  among  the  farmers  roun,"  with 
Jenny  and  her  bashful  lover  amongst  them  ;  the  plaintive 
psalm  and  the  solemn  prayer  ascend  to  heaven  ;  and  the 
poet's  full  heart  bursts  into  song.  The  actors  in  that 
scene  have  long  passed  away ;  the  husband  and  the  father 
prays  no  more  ;  the  bairns  have  lived  and  toiled  and  now 
rest ;  haply  the  very  cottage  has  crumbled  into  dust ;  but 
the  scene  itself  remains.  The  genius  of  song  shone  upon 
it  one  Saturday  night,  and  by  its  own  transcendant  rays 
transferred  it  to  imperishable  plates — flattered  in  nothing, 
nor  in  aught  imperfect — but  as  it  was,  a  group  of  humble 
life,  drawn  with  such  exquisite  truth,  that  it  will  stand  as 
long  as  family  love  and  prayer  endure.  This  touches  our 
hearts. 

His  own  heart  is  swelling  full  and  over,  ''and  ilka  bird 
and  ilka  tree"  receives  its  share.  But  if  a  bonnie  lassie 
comes  along,  as  to  the  queen  of  love,  he  turns  to  her  ;  and 


GEORGE  GORDON.  125 

investing  her  with  royal  robes,  woven  by  his  own  ardent 
imagination,  pours  at  her  feet  the  very  essence  of  his  devo- 
tion and  worship.  She  dies  perhaps — it  matters  not — he 
sees  her  beyond  the  stars,  and  in  a  transport  of  passionate 
longing,  throws  himself  on  the  sod,  agonized  by  the  dis- 
tance which  separates  them,  and  breathes  forth  his  elo- 
quent soul  to  '^  Mary  in  Heaven."  He  is  not  long  sombre. 
Sorrow  having  found  vent  in  song,  like  spring  clouds 
after  their  moisture  is  discharged  in  rain,  disappears,  and 
the  sun  comes  forth  again.  With  the  change,  his  exuber- 
ant humor,  second  only  to  his  love,  comes  out  and  dis- 
ports itself.  He  addresses  ^'  The  Deil,"  and  tells  of  ''  Tam 
O'Shanter," — ''a  louse  on  a  lady's  bonnet,"  calls  out  his 
fun  and  wisdom.  And  where  nothing  better  happens  to 
evoke  his  quaint  humor,  it  even  spends  itself  on  "The 
Toothache,"  and  a  ''Tax  Collector's  demand."  His  pas- 
sionate heart  and  his  redundant  fancy,  continually  com- 
mingle and  effervesce  in  a  tumult  of  poetry  ;  pregnant 
with  the  tonic  of  high  moral  purpose  and  the  spirit  of 
freedom,  it  has  furnished  a  glorious  intellectual  beverage 
to  our  generations  past — is  as  grateful  to  our  palates  to- 
day, as  it  was  to  those  of  our  forefathers. 

The  farm  at  Ellisland  did  not  answer.  He  was  courted 
and  caressed  by  persons  in  station  far  above  him,  and  the 
labor  of  the  farm  became  distasteful.  He  unfortunately 
had  been  procured  an  office  in  the  excise,  to  which  he 
looked  in  case  the  farm  failed.  Doubtless  the  sternness 
of  necessity,  had  he  not  had  this  office  in  view,  would 
have  caused  such  attention  as  would  have  made  the  farm 
successful.  He  received  the  place,  the  emoluments  of 
which  were  some  £70  per  annum.  This  position  brought 
him  in  contact  with  profitless  company,  and  induced  hab- 
its of  intemperance.  It  hampered  his  noble  indepen- 
dence of  spirit.  His  views,  right  or  wrong  were  opposed 
to  the  government,  and  as  he  expressed  them  freely,  he 
was  threatened  with  dismissal.  He  defended  himself 
with  his  accustomed  eloquent  spirit ;  and  though  he  did 
not  lose  his  place,  his  promotion  was  refused.  He  felt 
like  a  caged  eagle,  and  he  beat  in  vain  against  his  bars. 
His  condition  preyed  on  his  mind,  and  he  drank  more 
deeply  than  before. 


126  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Fearless  truth  has  to  crouch,  under  the  more  imperious 
need  for  bread.  The  carcase  is  maintained  by  the  slavery 
of  the  spirit.  Poor  Burns  felt  the  chain,  and  'Hhe  iron 
entered  his  soul;"  but  death  shortty  delivered  him. 

Is  there  no  hand-^vriting  on  the  wall  at  this  high  fes- 
tival? Shall  we  exalt  in  our  poet's  glory  and  take  no 
warning  from  his  closing  days — He  whom  Scotland  loved 
is  smitten  by  Scotland's  vice,  and  shall  we  not  cry  out? 
We  make  no  apology  for  hanging  a  national  warning  at 
half-mast,  upon  the  lofty  monument  of  the  poet's  renown 
— of  draping  his  glory  with  our  mourning  and  regret. 
Not  with  words  of  blame,  but  in  the  accents  of  sorrow, 
would  we  recall  the  spectacle  of  that  spirit  of  beauty,  de- 
graded and  dragged  captive  by  animal  appetite — of  that 
glorious  effluent  of  divinity,  obscured  and  polluted  by  the 
craving  fiend  of  strong  drink.  Gloom  and  poverty  sadly 
curtained  his  dying  couch. 

Scotland's  earth  received  her  wa3rv^^ard  son  at  the  age 
of  thirty-seven,  to  his  last  rest;  and  men  woke  to  the 
consciousness  that  a  splendid  genius  had  come  like  a  me- 
teor amongst  them,  and  had  passed  away.  A  life  check- 
ered with  the  brightest  lights,  and  the  somberest  shades, 
had  merged  into  eternity.  But  he  had  sunk  himself  into 
the  hearts  of  the  people,  and  they  loved  him.  We  may 
safely  say  that  no  poet  of  any  people  has  been  so  deeply 
loved  as  Burns — a  man  full  of  faults,  but  more  gloriously 
full  of  virtues.  His  fame  has  become  so  knit  with  his 
country,  that  to  love  Scotland  is  to  love  her  peasant  bard. 

Rest  thee,  noble,  leal  heart — faithful  and  impulsive 
spirit,  rest!  Long  enough  hadst  thou  lived  for  fame. 
Thou  cam'st  like  a  comet,  but  though  thy  nucleus  disap- 
peared in  a  brief  space,  thy  track,  full  of  radiance,  re- 
mains transfixed  in  glory  in  the  heavens,  and  is  added  to 
our  perpetual  constellations.  Star  after  star  has  since 
appeared ;  a  crowd  of  orbs  now  gem  our  skies ;  but  in  its 
soft  and  tender  light  thy  glory  still  remains,  undimmed 
by  time  or  contrast.  Thou  hast  taken  thy  place  amongst 
the  choral  band  of  Poets,  who  in  all  time  have  chanted 
the  songs  of  Humanity,  and  have  given  utterance  to  its 
loves,  its  hopes,  its  triumphs,  and  despairs, — to  its  pas- 


GEORGE   GORDON.  127 

sions  stormy  as  winter  on  the  summit  of  Benvoirlich,  or 
soft  as  summer  on  the  Banks  of  Doon.  Thy  voice  is 
heard  as  a  sweet  tenor — scarce  heard  indeed  when  the 
swell  of  mighty  notes  prevail,  when  Milton's  superb  bass 
rolls  out,  as  from  the  unseen  spheres;  when  again  the 
martial  recitative  of  Scott,  or  Byron's  sonorous  baritone 
peel  forth — bnt  ever  and  anon,  stealing  on  the  ear  with 
a  quiet  melody;  clear,  simple,  and  true,  which  searches 
and  plays  amongst  the  tendrils  of  our  nature,  stirring  the 
fountains  of  tenderness  within  us,  until  the  unbidden 
tears  come  forth,  and  our  touched  hearts  acknowledge  a 
master's  power.  No  more  wilt  thou  sing  the  songs  of 
freedom,  and  of  love,  and  of  humble  life — no  more  catch 
up  the  ancient  melodies  and  ballads  of  thy  country,  and 
transmit  them  clothed  with  new  and  living  beauty. 

But  a  nation's  tongues  take  up  thy  strains;  they  go, 
wandering  in  pathos  and  power,  through  the  valleys  and 
amongst  the  hills  of  thy  native  land,  waking  her  echoes 
and  sinking  into  the  hearts  of  her  people,  softening  them 
and  making  them  brave — they  are  prolonged  beyond  her 
narrow  bounds,  and  carried  wherever  her  sons  wander, 
till  the  airs  thou  hast  immortalized  encircle  the  earth — and 
at  this  moment  will  ascend  from  almost  every  clime  a 
spontaneous  thank-offering  to  the  Great  Source  of  all 
poetry,  in  gratitude  that  He  woke  thy  glowing  minstrelsy. 


MATTHEW  HALL  MCALLISTER 

PY    j^ENI^Y    p.     JilGHTON. 


f  I  iHis  eminent  gentleman  was  born  m  ;:^avannah,  (ieorgia, 
X  on  the  twenty-sixth  clay  of  November,  in  the  year 
eighteen  hundred,  and  died  at  San  Francisco,  California, 
on  the  nineteenth  day  of  December,  eighteen  hundred 
and  sixty-five.  He  was  educated  at  Princeton  College, 
New  Jersey,  and  bred  to  the  law,  in  which  honorable 
profession,  for  three  generations,  members  of  his  family 
have  achieved  distinction.  After  his  admission  to  the 
Bar,  he  practiced  successfully  in  the  City  of  Savannah 
for  twenty-nine  years ;  and  during  the  Administration  of 
John  Quincy  Adams,  filled  the  post  of  United  States  At- 
torney for  the  Southern  District  of  Georgia,  which  had 
been  previously  held  by  his  father,  Matthew  McAllister, 
under  the  appointment  of  General  Washington.  For  many 
years,  Judge  McAllister  was  so  fully  occupied  by  the  labo- 
rious duties  connected  with  his  extensive  and  lucrative 
practice,  that  he  took  no  conspicuous  part  in  public 
affairs  ;  but  when,  in  eighteen  hundred  and  thirty-two, 
the  attempt  was  made  to  graft  the  revolutionary  doctrine 
of  nullification  upon  the  policy  of  the  South,  he  boldly 
ranged  himself  with  the  defenders  of  the  Union  and  the 
Constitution,  and  in  the  heated  discussions  which  occured 
during  that  period,  exhibited  a  breadth  of  knowledge, 
a  logical  power,  and  a  fervid  eloquence,  which  soon  mark- 
ed him  for  a  popular  leader.  At  the  age  of  thirty-five, 
he  was  one  of  the  most  prominent  and  influential  mem- 
bers of  the  Legislature  of  Georgia,  and  subsequently, 
for  five  successive  years,  represented  Savannah  in  the 
9 


130        REPRESENTATIVE  MEN  OF  THE  PACIFIC. 

higher  branch  of  that  body,  during  which  time^  in  the 
face  of  a  vigorous  and  persistent  opposition,  he  effected 
a  radical  and  most  beneficial  change  in  the  judicial  sys- 
tem of  the  State,  by  the  establishment  of  the  Court  for 
the  Correction  of  Errors. 

In  eighteen  hundred  and  forty-five,  he  became  the  Dem- 
ocratic candidate  for  the  Governorship  of  Georgia,  and 
though  his  party  was  in  a  hopeless  minority,  such  was  his 
personal  popularity,  that  he  was  defeated  only  by  a  small 
vote;  and  three  years  afterwards,  represented  his  native 
State  as  one  of  the  delegates  at  large,  in  the  National  Dem- 
ocratic Convention  which  nominated  General  Cass  for 
the  Presidency.  In  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty,  he  mi- 
grated to  California,  and  practiced  law  in  San  Francisco 
with  remarkable  success  until  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty- 
three,  when  he  temporarily  returned  to  Georgia.  At  this 
period,  the  Legislature  of  that  State  were  engaged  in  the 
selection  of  an  United  States  Senator,  and  upon  the  arriv- 
al of  Judge  McAllister,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  he 
had  permanently  identified  himself  with  the  interests  of 
the  Pacific  Coast,  he  was  nominated  by  his  friends,  and 
out  of  one  hundred  and  eleven  votes,  which  were  neces- 
sary to  a  choice,  he  obtained  the  extraordinary  number 
of  ninety- three.  So  emphatic  a  compliment  has  been  rarely 
paid  to  any  man,  however  eminent,  under  similar  circum- 
;stances.  In  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty-five,  upon  the 
(Organization  of  the  first  Circuit  Court  for  the  Pacific 
States,  he  received  the  appointment  of  Presiding  Judge, 
which  position  he  retained  until  eighteen  hundred  and 
sixty-two,  when  failing  health  compelled  him  to  resign ; 
and,  after  forty  years  spent  in  arduous  labor  and  rewarded 
by  honorable  achievements,  he  retired  into  that  private 
station  from  which  it  pleased  God  that  he  should  never 
again  emerge. 

Thus  have  been  summarily  stated  a  few  of  the  leading 
facts  in  the  life  of  this  distinguished  man,  of  whose  ca- 
reer, it  may  be  justly  said  :  ''sic  itur  ad  astral  Of  his 
intellectual  and  moral  qualities  it  may  be  generally  ob- 
served, that  he  possessed  in  happy  combination  the  shrewd 
practical  sense,  the  keen  and  analytical  power,  and  the 


MATTHEW  HALL  MCALLISTER.  131 

strong  moral  feeling,  which  characterized  his  Scottish 
ancestry,  and  the  glowing  imagination  and  the  chivalrous 
honor  which  grow  out  of  aristocratic  systems  and  ripen 
under  tropical  skies.  His  learning  was  both  extensive 
and  varied  ;  his  style,  whether  in  speaking  or  in  writing, 
clear  and  rich  ;  and  his  language  apt  and  precise.  His 
manners  were  of  the  old  school,  so  gentle  and  so  courtly 
that  they  won  for  him  affection  and  commanded  for  him 
respect.  He  was  kind  and  generous  to  all  with  whom  he 
came  in  contact,  and  young  practitioners  especially,  who, 
in  their  early  struggles,  are  often  chilled  and  wounded  by 
the  frosty  patronage,  the  trampling  jealousy,  or  the  hard 
severity,  of  their  seniors,  ever  found  in  him  a  discriminat- 
ing adviser  and  a  sympathizing  friend. 

Illustrations  of  the  correctness  of  these  remarks  might 
be  numerously  cited,  were  not  brevity  part  of  the  design 
of  this  sketch.  Among  those  bearing  on  his  professional 
standing,  may  be  recalled  the  celebrated  case  of  Kennedy 
vs.  The  Georgia  State  Bank,  reported  in  the  eighth  volume 
of  Howard's  Reports  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United 
States,  which  Judge  McAllister  argued  against  Daniel 
Webster  and  other  eminent  lawyers,  and  in  which  he  was 
victorious.  His  argument  in  this  case  fully  exhibits  the 
vigor  of  his  mind  and  the  profundity  of  his  research, 
which  were  even  more  strikingly  displayed  after  he  had 
reached  the  Bench,  in  an  opinion  which  received  the  un- 
usual honor  of  being  formally  adopted  by  the  Supreme 
Court  of  the  United  States.  These,  however,  are  but  two 
examples  out  of  many  that  might  be  selected  from  the 
product  of  his  industry  within  the  wide  circle  in  which 
he  moved. 

But  perhaps  the  most  valuable  services  which  Judge 
McAllister  rendered  to  his  country  and  to  mankind,  were 
in  connection  with  the  development  of  the  great  commu- 
nities which  fringe  the  Pacific  Ocean,  and  which,  within 
twenty  years,  have  fulfilled  the  prophecy  of  Bishop  Berke- 
ley by  carrying  civilization  to  its  extreme  western  limit. 
In  this  practical  age,  in  which  facts  multiply  with  unex- 
ampled rapidity,  and  the  minds  of  men  are  profoundly 
occupied  with  their  own  immediate  concerns,  we  are  apt 


1S2  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

to  overlook  the  importance  of  contemporary  events  in 
their  relation  to  the  future  ;  but  history  has  always  placed 
the  founders  of  States  among  the  most  illustrious  of  our 
race,  and  to  this  class  the  subject  of  these  observations 
emphatically  belonged.  The  head  of  a  large  and  distin- 
guished family,  at  an  advanced  age,  surrounded  by  asso- 
ciations from  which  it  must  have  been  most  difficult  for 
him  to  escape,  he  severed  the  ties  which  bound  him  to 
his  native  State,  crossed  a  continent,  and  in  a  country 
scarcely  redeemed  from  barbarism  and  exceptional  in  all 
its  conditions,  established  centres  of  usefulness  and  of 
influence,  which  have  most  powerfully  contributed  to  the 
rapid,  but  symmetrical  and  steady,  progress  that  has 
attracted  to  the  Pacific  Coast  the  wondering  admiration 
of  the  world.  Not  only  this,  but  in  his  place  on  the 
Bench,  with  great  questions  to  decide,  in  the  solution  of 
which  he  was  almost  unassisted  by  precedent,  he  most 
actively  and  beneficially  participated  in  the  just  applica- 
tion of  legal  principles  to  anomalous  and  intricate  com- 
bination of  fact,  and  thus  rendered  to  society,  perhaps 
the  greatest  benefit  that  wisdom  and  learning  can  confer. 
The  single  volume  of  his  opinions,  edited  by  one  of  his 
sons,  is  a  monument  to  his  memory  which  will  excite  the 
attention  and  respect  of  future  generations,  and  the  utility 
of  which  will  be  coextensive  with  the  existence  of  the 
Union. 

The  death  of  Judge  McAllister  was  sudden  but  not 
unexpected.  In  the  various  Courts  of  San  Francisco — 
Municipal,  State,  and  Federal — the  usual  honors  were 
paid  to  his  memory,  and  were  accompanied  by  eulogies, 
both  from  the  Bench  and  from  the  Bar,  more  than  ordi- 
narily earnest  and  impressive.  The  funeral  ceremonies 
were  rendered  highly  imposing  by  the  number,  the  respect- 
ability, and  the  sincerity,  of  those  by  whom  they  were 
witnessed. 

To  those  who  enjoyed  the  advantage  of  a  personal 
acquaintance  with  Judge  McAllister,  especially  to  the 
narrow  circle  where  his  inner  life  was  spent,  there  are 
other  thoughts  and  other  feelings  suggested  by  his  death, 
which  are  best  unuttered.     ^^Quis  talia  fando .  tem^eret  a 


MATTHEW   HALL    MCALLISTER.  133 

lachrymis.''  With  reverential  tenderness  he  was  commit- 
ted to  the  peace  and  serenity  of  the  tomb.  There,  in 
that  beautiful  cemetery,  overlooking  the  Pacific,  where 
the  war  of  our  hard  and  struggling  life  cannot  penetrate, 
and  where  the  western  breezes  make  soft  music  amidst 
the  graves  of  the  unforgotten  dead,  he  shall  calmly  and 
securely  sleep,  while  in  the  metropolis  of  California  his 
descendants  shall  worthily  transmit  his  lofty  virtues  and 
his  intellectual  fame,  and  throughout  the  Pacific  Coast, 
society,  ever  expanding  and  ever  improving,  shall  per- 
manently feel  the  impulse  of  his  labors,  and  shall  preserve 
his  name  on  the  roll  of  its  most  illustrious  Pioneers. 


JOSEPH  G.  BALDWIN 

^Y    f    p.     ^OWARD, 
AUTHOB    OF    THE     "BliOVE    PAPEIiS." 


THE  father  of  Joseph  G.  Baldwin,  a  native  of  Connec- 
ticut, emigrated  to  Virginia  at  an  early  period  of  his 
life;  and  after  a  few  years'  residence  in  his  adopted  State, 
married  a  lady  of  his  own  name  from  Maryland,  whose 
uncle  subsequently  became  very  distinguished  in  the 
judicial  annals  of  Virginia.  That  father  still  lives  at 
Lynchburg.  Born  at  Staunton,  in  the  county  of  Augusta, 
on  the  22d  of  January,  1815,  we  find  young  Joseph,  at 
the  tender  age  of  twelve,  developing  unusual  business 
precocity  and  earnest  self-reliance  in  the  performance  of 
the  arduous  and  responsible  duties  of  a  Deputy  District 
Court  Clerk  in  his  native  town.  Still  further  illustrating 
his  youthful  energy  and  early  mental  capacity,  we  hear 
of  his  assuming  the  entire  editorial  control  of  a  popular 
newspaper,  at  Buchanan,  in  the  county  of  Rockbridge,  at 
the  very  boyish  period  of  seventeen.  And  it  may  be  here 
remarked  with  propriety,  that  no  better  instance  can  be 
adduced  than  the  individual  now  under  review,  of  the 
tendency  of  our  peculiar  institutions  to  foster  and  reward 
the  unaided  efforts  of  the  emulous  offspring  of  compara- 
tive indigence. 

How  he  acquired  his  legal  knowledge,  save  by  night 
vigils,  cannot  be  told ;  but  a  comparative  lad  of  but  nine- 
teen years  of  age,  he  is  next  seen  at  DeKalb,  in  the  Stiite 


136  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF    THE   PACIFIC, 

of  Mississippi,  springing  into  legal  notoriety^  and  the 
caressed  and  intimate  associate  of  such  luminaries  as 
Wiley  P.  Harris  and  J.  T.  Harrison,  and  that  marvel  of 
modern  oratory,  S.  S.  Prentiss.  Between  him  and  the 
latter  arose  upon  the  instant  an  enduring  regard,  stronger 
than  the  ties  of  brotherhood.  It  was  the  sudden  meet- 
ing of  kindred  genius — the  blending  and  coalescing  of 
two  master-spirits.  It  was  wonderful,  the  strange  affec- 
tion that  knit  so  indissolubly  together  those  two  nervous 
minds.  It  was  just  as  the  great  advocate  was  embarking 
at  Xew  Orleans  to  breathe  his  last  in  his  loved  IS^atchez. 
He  turned  away  from  the  coterie  of  almost  worshiping 
ones  who  surrounded  him,  to  his  devoted  friend,  Colonel 
Alexander  Walker  of  the  Delta.  ''Alec,  be  sure,"  said 
he  in  that  melting  voice  of  his,  "to  write  my  love  to 
Joe  Baldwin.  /  have  written  my  last  on  earth.  A  great 
man  is  Joe.  He  has  no  superior  as  writer  and  lawyer. 
He  comes  the  nearest  to  my  idea  of  an  universal  genius." 
It  was  the  tribute  of  dying  worth  to  living  excellence. 

At  twenty-one,  young  Baldwin  repaired  to  Sumpter 
county,  in  the  State  of  Alabama,  continuing  the  practice 
of  his  profession  with  renewed  zest  and  extraordinary 
success,  until  summoned  by  the  voice  of  the  people  to 
the  State  legislative  councils.  In  '44,  he  acquired  much 
oratorical  reputation  as  an  electoral  canvasser  on  the 
Whig  ticket;  and  in  1849  was  defeated  by  Col.  S.  W. 
Inge  for  Congress,  by  250  votes;  yet  establishing  his  per- 
sonal popularity  in  that  violent  Democratic  State  by 
securing  the  suffrage  of  every  county  in  his  district  but 
one. 

At  that  time,  the  practice  of  the  law  in  that 
section  of  the  country  was  somewhat  peculiar.  The 
attorney  was  in  the  habit  of  traversing  his  entire 
judicial  circuit.  The  termination  of  this  protracted 
itinerancy  left  him  but  a  scant  space  of  some  two  or 
three  months  for  devotion  to  his  home  clientage.  It  was 
during  one  of  those  hurried  intervals,  and  while  fretted 
with  an  extensive  and  lucrative  practice,  that  he  in- 
dicted by  snatches  and  at  candle  light,  that  series  of 
sketches  now  so  popularly  known  under  the  soubriquet 


JOSEPH    G.    BALDWIN.  137 

of  The  Flush  Times  of  Alabama.  I  regard  it  almost  a 
matter  of  supererogation  to  descant  upon  the  merits  of 
this  production,  now  so  generally  diffused  throughout 
our  land.  Its  title  and  class  of  topics,  somewhat  repug- 
nant to  the  staid  and  scholarly  mind,  would  associate  il 
with  that  careless,  and  roistering  and  rollicking,  mass  of 
ephemeral  exudings  with  which  the  press  has  teemed  for 
several  past  years.  Its  perusal  dissipates  such  disparag- 
ing notion.  That  it  was  hastily  composed  is  no  argument 
against  its  intrinsic  worth.  It  was  the  first  literary  essay 
of  a  mind  crowded  with  thought  and  replete  with  ex- 
quisite imagery — the  primitive  yield  of  a  rich  virgin 
soil — the  gleeful  bubbling  of  a  full,  and  till  then  undis- 
turbed fountain.  Occasionally  descending  into  the  pro- 
vincialisms and  sectional  eccentricities  of  a  class  with 
whom  the  author  was  brought  in  contact,  the  reader  is 
never  annoyed  with  tameness  or  startled  by  vulgarity. 
There  is  a  genial  and  bounding  mirthfulness  throughout, 
with  no  offensive  or  wounding  syllable.  He  riots  in 
ludicrous  delight,  with  the  peculiarities  of  the  nomadic 
bar,  and  yet  so  hearty  and  refined  are  his  strokes  of 
humor,  that  he  enhances  his  victims  in  our  estimation. 
There  is  nothing  of  that  gross  caricature  in  the  Flush 
Times  that  so  pleases  the  unlettered  crowd.  It  would  be 
difficult  not  to  admire  old  Chasm  in  his  fierce  battle 
against  the  legal  fledgling.  While  venting  such  gall  as 
never  issued  from  the  mouth  of  Timon,  he  maintains  the 
dignity  of  a  veteran  lawyer,  and  interweaves  the  most 
apposite  and  learned  quotations  in  his  classical  and 
scathing  invective.  Apart  from  the  emanations  of  con- 
vulsing wit  that  scintillate  and  sparkle  along  each  page, 
this  work  has  a  higher  charm  of  pure,  classic  diction. 
It  contains  no  violation  of  the  most  rigid  literary  taste, 
or  the  most  elevated  chastity  of  thought ;  and  it  almost 
groans  under  its  affluence  of  cunning  fantasies  of  lan- 
guage, and  merry  conceits,  and  adroit  suddenness  of  sit- 
uations. 

There  is  one  serious  effort  in  the  collection  that  be- 
comes extremely  pathetic  as  we  recall  the  relations  that 
existed  between  the  writer  and  the  subject.     A  survivor 


138  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

is  portraying  the  attributes  of  his  deceased  friend ;  and 
it  required  just  such  a  golden  pen  to  trace  the  bright 
and  glowing  theme.  They  had  been  companions;  and 
many  a  time  and  oft  had  pierced  the  drowsy  ear  of  night 
with  their  chaste  but  uproarious  hilarity.  It  may  be  a 
defect  of  both  taste  and  judgment  on  my  part,  but  for 
purity  of  style  and  richness  and  copiousness  of  illustra- 
tion and  sententious  analysis  of  character,  I  have  en- 
countered nothing  superior  in  the  English  language  to 
Judge  Baldwin's  essay  on  the  life  of  S.  S.  Prentiss.  It 
is  a  dense  repertoire  of  salient  thought  enveloped  in 
spotless  Saxon  robe;  and  yet  the  writer  scarcely  ever 
crossed  the  portals  of  a  hedge  school-house. 

He  has  written  another  work,  of  a  character  so  di- 
vergent from  his  humorous  essays  that  it  puzzles  us  to 
conceive  them  the  issue  of  the  same  brain.  His  ''  Party 
Leaders"  is  a  careful  and  philosophic  product  of  his  ma- 
turer  years.  A  reviewer,  who  would  mould  public  opinion 
to  his  behests,  once  pronounced  its  style  ''ambitious." 
It  was  the  sneer  of  envy  and  malicious  detraction.  The 
language  of  this  superior  treatise  especially  embodies  the 
elements  of  nervousness  and  simplicity,  while  the  ar- 
rangement and  marshaling  of  his  facts  develop  the 
highest  order  of  logic.  I  am  more  than  willing  to  rest 
the  literary  fame  of  my  deceased  friend  upon  this  single 
production.  It  has  already  noiselessly  crept  into  the 
classics  of  the  day,  and  has  received  the  stamp  of  merit 
from  English  approbation.  Not,  perhaps,  in  the  dis- 
jointed times  of  the  present,  but  the  future  statesman 
will  garner  it  up  as  the  most  reliable  contemporaneous 
biography  of  those  great  spirits  who  thought  and  acted 
for  the  rude  masses  of  our  generation ;  and  it  will  be- 
come his  encyclopaedia  from  which  to  cull  pregnant 
political  facts  that  would  otherwise  have  glided  into 
oblivion.  He  will  ponder  over  its  close  analysis  and 
amazing  fertility  of  thought,  and  award  that  due  com-- 
mendation  to  its  brilliant  author,  of  which  our  people 
are  somewhat  chary. 

Judge  Baldwin  was  extremely  careless  of  his  literary 
reputation.     Penning  with  utmost  ease  and  facility,  he 


JOSEPH    G.    BALDWIN.  139 

adopted  no  method,  but  wrote  only  when  ^'  in  the  mood;" 
and  he  strewed  his  prolific  manuscripts  around  with  the 
recklessness  of  a  spoiled  child,  the  playthings  of  which 
he  was  weary.  I  know,  however,  that  had  he  not  been 
summoned  away,  he  would  have  devoted  himself  to  the 
master  effort  of  his  life.  He  had  already  amassed  the 
materials  for  a  philosophic  history  of  this  portion  of  the 
Pacific  coast.  With  wealth  sufiicient  for  literary  retiracy, 
engirt  on  all  sides  with  admiring  and  loving  friends,  and 
in  the  full  flush  and  vigor  of  his  powers,  it  might  well  be 
augured  that  he  would  achieve  something  of  honor  to  the 
age.     But  the  great  and  good  God  willed  otherwise. 

It  now  becomes  necessary  to  say  something  of  his  legal 
attainments  and  forensic  ability.  It  is  a  very  stupid  error 
of  the  illiterate  that  the  limited  mental  constitution  of  a 
man  does  not  permit  excellence  in  more  than  one  intel- 
lectual pursuit ;  and  hence  their  loathness  to  intrust  litiga- 
tion to  a  lawyer  who  is  detected  in  anything  that  savors 
of  abstract  intellectual  pursuits.  But  the  vast  learning 
and  continuous  writing  of  Cicero  debarred  him  not  from 
his  patrons^  nor  impaired  his  powers  of  oratory.  It  is 
learning  that  gilds  and  renders  attractive  the  drudging 
professions;  and  hence  the  illustration  of  Macaulay  on 
this  very  matter  that  the  fleet  ostrich  employs  its  wings 
as  well  as  feet. 

Contending  against  a  voice  by  no  means  attractive  and 
a  physique  ill  adapted  to  the  graces  of  the  higher  rank 
of  oratorical  efforts.  Judge  Baldwin  had  at  his  command 
forcible  and  terse  and  pointed  language,  that  never  failed 
to  arrest  the  attention  of  both  judge  and  jury. 

In  another  connection,  allusion  has  been  made  to  the 
severe  logical  cast  of  his  mind,  and  yet,  with  the  rarest 
versatility  and  relief,  while  avoiding  all  attempts  at  rheto- 
rical flourish,  he  would  bring  to  bear  the  most  inimitable 
and  exquisite  powers  of  illustration.  About  the  most 
arid  and  uninviting  legal  abstraction,  he  would  weave  some 
happy  simile  or  anecdotal  coincidence  that  would  captivate 
the  understanding  of  the  most  obtuse. 

In  1853,  Mr.  Baldwin  left  Alabama,  reaching  California 
iu  th^  early  part  of  1854. 


140  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

With  a  mind  stored  with  every  phase  of  legal  learning, 
both  as  counsellor  and  advocate,  he  had  achieved  dis- 
tinction in  his  olden  home ;  and  it  is  not  surprising  there- 
fore, that  in  the  new  State  of  California  he  should  rank 
at  once  among  the  most  eminent  of  the  bar  of  San  Fran- 
cisco. His  success  was  commensurate  with  his  marked 
ability.  His  professional  prominence  secured  him  the 
position  of  a  seat  upon  the  Supreme  Bench,  to  which  he 
was  elevated  by  the  voice  of  the  people,  in  the  fall  of  the 
year  1858. 

The  manner  in  which  he  discharged  the  duties  and 
responsibilities  of  this  new  and  untried  sphere  mounts 
into  the  marvelous  and  borders  upon  the  realms  of  fable. 
At  the  outset  of  his  judicial  career,  there  was  a  constantly 
increasing  calendar  that  had  already  swollen  to  the  fright- 
ful number  of  near  600  causes — an  Augean  stable  of 
diverse  and  intricate  litigation  that  might  well  appall  the 
most  herculean  Judge.  At  the  termination  of  his  term 
of  office,  the  portentous  calendar  was  cleared;  and  it  is 
within  bounds  to  say  that  four-fifths  of  the  serried  and 
confused  mass  had  passed  through  his  laborious  hands — 
an  amount  of  continuous  toil  unexampled  in  the  annals 
of  judicature.  More  than  any  other  of  our  Supreme 
Judiciary,  has  he  contributed  to  elucidate  our  infant  sys- 
tem of  laws  and  the  novel  and  perplexing  questions  that 
have  sprung  up  under  our  peculiar  situation  and  varied 
pursuits.  He  combined  unwonted  industry  with  most 
consummate  ability.  His  adjudications  are  models  of 
clear  and  logical  perception,  and  reveal  the  most  ex- 
tensive research,  and  stringent  power  of  analysis,  and 
copious  and  refined  illustration,  and  are  characterized  by 
grace  of  style,  and  scholarly  learning  and  sound  deduc- 
tion. In  little  while,  he  reared  his  name  among  the  most 
distinguished  and  erudite  of  the  jurists  of  the  land. 

The  State  of  California  should  be  very  proud  of  Judge 
Baldwin.  He  has  been  intimately  and  prominently  as- 
sociated with  her  history  for  the  last  ten  years.  Even 
his  salient  and  epigrammatic  wit,  generally  so  transitory, 
is  interwoven  and  will  become  traditionary  with  the 
striking  events  that  provoked  its  flashing. 


JOSEPH    G.    BALDWIN.  141 

The  manners  of  Judge  Baldwin  were  of  a  frank  and 
simple  nature,  with  a  sweet  intrusiveness  of  social  tem- 
perament that  disarmed  all  reserve  and  beckoned  im- 
mediate companionship.  He  united  the  highest  order  of 
conversational  powers  to  the  fascination  of  his  exhaustless 
flow  of  racy  and  pungent  humor ;  and  yet  had  he  a  manli- 
ness of  character '  and  a  stern  sense  of  right  and  a  high 
principle  of  honor  that  won  the  esteem  of  the  great  and 
good  with  whom  he  was  brought  in  contact.  Such  as  he 
could  never  foster  a  sordid  feeling.  His  pockets  were 
ever  open  to  every  charitable  appeal.  He  esteemed 
his  race,  and  his  checkered  career  is  marked  at  each 
footfall  with  the  most  passionate  affections.  Towards 
those  he  loved  he  manifested  the  tenderness  of  girl- 
hood. I  have  seen  the  big  tear-drop  course  down  his 
cheek  as  he  would  mount  in  glowing  panegyric  upon  his 
great  political  chieftain,  Henry  Clay.  He  has  gone  to 
his  long  home,  leaving  no  enmity  behind.  As  son  and 
husband  and  father  he  was  the  idol  of  devoted  love.  It 
was  only  a  few  weeks  before  his  death  that  he  buried  a 
darling  boy;  but  they  met  again  in  the  spirit-land.  It  is 
almost  wrong  to  weep  at  the  final  departure  of  such  a  man. 
Upon  his  garments  rests  not  a  stain.  He  is  in  bliss  and 
with  his  God :  would  we  recall  him  to  a  life  that  at  best 
is  full  of  sorrows  ? 


:7EL  .1771 


CORNELIUS   K.   GARRISON 


•     4.   ■■-  -• 

THIS  gentleman  was  born  on  the  Hudson  river,  near 
West  Point,  on  the  1st  ddj  of  March,  1809.  His 
ancestors  were  Hollanders,  and  among  the  first  settlers 
of  New  Amsterdam:  on  the  father's  side  the  Garrisons 
and  Coverts,  and  on  the  mother's  the  Kingslands  and  the 
Schuylers — among  the  earliest  of  the  old  Knickerbocker 
families.  His  father,  Oliver  Garrison,  was  at  one  time  a 
large  capitalist,  but  lost  his  property  when  Cornelius  was 
quite  young.  The  latter,  at  the  age  of  thirteen,  left  his 
home  and  found  employment  in  the  carrying  trade  on  the 
Hudson  river,  following  this  occupation  during  the  busi- 
ness season  for  about  three  years.  Alive  to  the  value  and 
necessity  of  an  education,  he  diligently  applied  himself 
throughout  the  winter  months  when  the  navigation  of 
the  river  was  suspended,  to  study  at  a  country  school. 
At  the  request  of  his  mother,  he  abandoned  the  river  and 
went  to  New  York  city,  to  learn  architecture  and  the 
building  trade.  He  remained  in  New  York  three  years. 
The  knowledge  which  he  acquired  of  architecture  during 
that  period  was  extensive,  and  valuable  to  him  in  the 
years  which  immediately  followed. 

At  the  age  of  nineteen,  young  Garrison  removed  to 
Canada,  where  for  five  or  six  years  he  was  actively  engaged 
in  the   erection  of   buildings,  and  the   constructing  of 


144  IlEPRESENTATIVE    MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

steamboats  on  the  great  lakes.  During  his  residence 
there,  he  became  a  married  man,  espousing  a  lady  of 
Buffalo,  New  York. 

In  Canada,  Mr.  Garrison  acquired  the  reputation, 
which  he  has  ever  since  enjoyed,  of  being  a  reliable, 
clear-headed,  and  sagacious  business  man.  The  Upper 
Canada  Company — one  of  the  wealthiest  in  England,  and 
owning  extensive  possessions — gave  to  him  the  general 
super v^ision  of  the  Company's  affairs  in  the  province  ;  a 
trust  upon  which  he  entered,  but  which  he  soon  surren- 
dered, owing  to  the  threatened  outbreak  of  hostilities 
between  England  and  the  United  States,  growing  out 
of  the  border  difficulties  existing  at  the  time.  Having 
led  an  active  life  in  Canada  for  nearly  six  years,  Mr. 
Garrison  returned  to  the  United  States,  and  went  to 
the  Southwest,  where  he  long  followed  the  same  busi- 
ness he  had  so  successfully  prosecuted  in  the  British 
provinces,  and  was  also  engaged  in  several  other  im- 
portant mercantile  enterprises  connected  with  steam 
navigation  on  the  Mississippi. 

About  the  time  of  the  discovery  of  gold  in  California, 
Mr.  Garrison  removed  to  Panama,  where  he  established 
a  commercial  and  banking  house.  This  enterprise  was 
the  most  successful  of  any  which  had  thus  far  engaged 
his  attention.  In  the  latter  part  of  the  year  1852,  being 
then  on  a  visit  to  New  York  city,  with  a  view  to  estab- 
lish there  a  branch  of  his  Panama  house,  our  subject 
accepted  an  offer  made  him  by  the  Nicaragua  Steamship 
Company,  to  take  the  San  Francisco  agency  of  their  line 
of  vessels. 

A  sketch  of  Mr.  Garrison's  seven  years'  residence  in 
California  would  almost  involve  a  history  of  San  Fran- 
cisco during  that  period.  He  landed  in  that  city 
when  the  newly-established  Nicaragua  Steamship  Line 
was  rapidly  declining  under  inefficient  management, 
and  had  fallen  into  disrepute  by  the  terrible  calamities 
of  the  Independence  and  8.  8.  Leivis.  The  Mail  Steamship 
Company,  with  its  splendidly  equipp^sd  line  under  the 
able  direction  of  Captain  Knight,  was  in  the  full  tide  of 
success,  and  it  seemed  that  the  rival  line,  growing  more 


CORNELIUS   K.    GARRISON,  145 

and  more  unpopular  with  each  new  disaster,  must  soon 
pass  out  of  existence.  Mr.  Garrison  arrived,  March 
23d,  1853,  on  the  steamer  Sierra  J^evada,  with  a  salary  of 
$60,000  per  annum,  and  $25,000  additional,  as  the  agent 
of  sundry  Insurance  Companies.  The  effect  of  his  ad- 
ministrative ability  upon  the  fortunes  of  the  Nicaragua 
Transit  Company  was  immediate.  From  being  on  the 
verge  of  dissolution,  it  sprang,  as  if  by  magic,  into  life  and 
prosperity.  The  new  agent  promptly  reorganized  the 
service  in  every  department;  recommended  the  building 
of  several  fast  ocean  steamships,  which  in  due  time  made 
their  appearance  around  Cape  Horn,  he,  in  some  instances, 
having  a  proprietary  interest  in  the  steamers  and  placing 
them  on  the  line  as  an  individual  enterprise.  Imbuing 
the  Company  in  New  York  with  his  own  indomitable 
energy,  he  induced  Yanderbilt  to  establish  a  line  of  ser- 
viceable steamers  on  the  inland  waters  of  Nicaragua.  An 
excellent  road  was  constructed  from  San  Juan  del  Sur  to 
Virgin  Bay,  and  the  navigation  of  the  San  Juan  River  was 
improved.  At  the  same  time  he  made  a  strong  bid  for 
carrying  the  mails — letters  being  taken  free  to  induce 
patronage  to  that  route — and  finally,  an  equal  portion  of 
the  treasure  shipment  was  secured.  The  traveling  public 
admitted  that  ^'a  power  in  the  land"  had  appeared,  and 
the  Nicaragua  route  was  transformed,  from  a  condition  of 
apathy  and  decay,  into  vigorous  prosperity,  mainly  by  the 
energy  and  will  of  one  man.  The  steamship  competition 
of  that  day  has  never  been  paralleled  in  the  history  of 
ocean  navigation.  Its  influence  extended  far  and  wide, 
and  the  rivalry,  strained  to  the  utmost  tension  of  con- 
flicting moneyed  interests,  gave  a  tone  to  every  department 
of  business  on  the  Pacific  coast. 

About  six  months  after  his  arrival^  and  perhaps  before 
lie  had  come  to  fully  understand  his  adopted  State,  Mr. 
Garrison  was  elected  Mayor  of  San  Francisco.  He  might 
fairly  have  claimed  exemption  from  additional  burthens, 
considering  the  herculean  task  he  had  undertaken  in  the 
sphere  of  his  legitimate  business.  The  distinction  was 
wholly  unsought  by  one  whose  tastes  and  occupations 
through  life  had  been  outside  of  the  political  arena. 
10 


146  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

His  immediate  predecessors,  Messrs.  Harris  and  Brenham, 
had  filled  the  Mayoralty  with  marked  ability  and  success, 
and  it  may  be  supposed  that  he  entered  upon  his  duties 
with  some  misgivings  as  to  his  qualifications  for  a  field 
thus  new  and  untried.  It  was  soon  evident,  however,  that 
the  same  sound  judgment  and  executive  talent  that  could 
grasp  and  prosperously  control  steamship  lines  and  bank- 
ing institutions,  could  with  equal  facility  administer  the 
affairs  of  a  community.  His  inaugural  address,  delivered 
in  October,  1853,  to  the  two  branches  of  the  Common 
Council,  was  a  model  of  plain,  unpretending  common 
sense,  abounding  in  practical  suggestions,  going  straight 
to  the  point,  and  quite  devoid  of  flourish  or  attempt  at 
oratorical  display.  He  acknowledged  the  weight  of  the 
responsibility,  and  pledged  himself  to  devote  his  best 
energies  to  the  interests  of  the  city. 

A  month  later,  he  submitted  a  message,  which  may 
challenge  any  paper  of  the  kind,  in  sound  business  ideas 
and  financial  propositions.  It  contained  the  germs  of 
what  became,  years  afterwards,  the  rallying  cries  of  re- 
form in  the  administration  of  the  city  government.  The 
first  outspoken  denunciation  in  any  official  document,  of 
the  disgraceful  public  gambling  then  prevalent  in  the  many 
saloons  in  San  Francisco,  and  the  first  rebuke  of  Sunday 
theatricals,  with  a  recommendation  for  ordinances  for 
their  suppression,  are  found  in  this  message.  And  it  was 
not  merely  a  verbal  protest  against  the  evils  described. 
Mr.  Garrison  never  ceased  to  wage  war  against  them  until 
the  desired  reforms  were  completely  effected.  The  crime 
of  a  public  gambling  hell  has  never  blackened  the  fame 
of  San  Francisco  since  Mayor  Grarrison's  term.  For  this 
act  alone  he  is  entitled  to  the  gratitude  of  all  who  respect 
morality,  decency  and  good  order.  The  first  proposal  of 
an  Industrial  School  for  juvenile  delinquents,  who  should 
thus  be  separated  from  contact  with  the  hardened  crim- 
inals in  the  cells  of  the  city  prison;  the  earliest  sugges- 
tions of  a  tariff  of  hack  fares  for  the  protection  of  strangers 
from  extortion ;  the  taxation  of  non-resident  capital, 
millions  of  which  were  enjoying  all  the  protection  and 
benefits  of  Government  without  contributing  in  the  least 


CORNELIUS  K.    GARRISON.  147 

to  its  maintenance;  the  building  of  substantial,  well- 
ventilated  school  houses  in  place  of  the  shanties  then 
used  in  various  districts — these,  among  other  proposals 
equally  sensible  and  at  that  time  novel,  were  embodied 
in  the  message.  There  was  also  a  plain  and  compre- 
hensive statement  of  the  city  indebtedness,  with  well- 
digested  plans  for  its  liquidation,  and  placing  the  public 
finances  upon  a  healthy  basis — all  showing  that  an  earnest 
and  thorough-going  business  man  was  at  the  helm. 

This  message  is  here  inserted,  nearly  in  full.  A1-" 
though  a  lengthy  document,  yet  it  possesses  great  his- 
toric value,  and  no  San  Franciscan  should  neglect  a 
careful  perusal  of  its  sound,  practical  suggestions,  and 
the  interesting  view  which  it  presents  of  the  condition 
of  the  various  departments  of  the  city  government,  six- 
teen years  ago. 

Message  op  Mayor  Garrison,  delivered  to  the  Common 
Council  of  the  City  of  San  Francisco,  Xov.  15,  1853. 

To  the  Honorable  the  Common  Council  of  the  City  of  San  Francisco. 

Gentlemen: — In  fulfilment  of  a  duty  enjoined  on  me 
by  the  charter  of  the  city,  and  a  promise  made  at  the 
time  of  my  induction  into  office,  I  beg  leave  respectfully 
to  communicate  to  you  the  following  statement  of  the 
indebtedness  of  the  cit}^,  and  its  financial  condition,  on 
the  22d  of  the  past  month,  together  with  the  estimated 
receipts  and  disbursements  for  the  remainder  of  the  fiscal 
year.  I  have  also  appended  my  views,  founded  upon  a 
thorough  examination  of  all  the  ramifications  of  the 
government,  in  regard  to  the  evils  and  abuses  which 
have  so  long  existed  in  the  conduct  of  our  municipal 
afiairs,  with  the  hope  and  conviction  that  the  Common 
Council  will  cooperate  with  me  in  making  the  corrections 
which  are  necessary  to  the  well-guarding  of  the  public 
treasury  from  abuses,  the  just  and  economical  adminis- 
tration of  its  finances,  and  high-toned  credit  of  the  city. 

As  will  be  seen  from  the  following  table,  the  entire 
indebtedness  of  the  city,  on  the  22d  day  of  October, 
1853,  was  as  follows; 


148  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Funded  Debt $1,500,000  00 

City  Warrants  unpaid  Juty  1,  1853 $215,647  47 

City  Warrants  issued  from  July  1  to  Oct.  5,  1853 217,953  84 

City  Warrants  issued  from  Oct.  5  to  Oct.  22,  1853 23,021  78 

$456,623  09 

Less  received  by  Ft.  Matthewson  from  treasurer,  to  Oct. 

5,  1853 $58,890  34 

Less  received  by  S.  E.  Harris. from  treasurer,  to  Oct,  22, 

1853 95,597  40, 

•$154,487  74 

$302,135  35 
Warrants  issued  on  account  Jenny  Lind  Building,  July 

1,  1852 $31,804  94 

Mortgage  held  by  M.  Dore 27,792  19 

$59,597  13 
Less  amount  canceled  by  treasiu-er 5,593  33 

$54,003  80 

Supposed  amount  of  3  per  cent,  scrip  outstanding,  prin- 
cipal and  accrued  interest $120,000  00 

Sundry  bills  in  bands  of  ComiDtroUer,  unpaid 14,052  75 

$134,852  75 

Total  Floating  Debt,  Oct.  22,  1853 490,191  80 

Total  indebtedness,  Funded  and  Floating $1,990,191  80 

By  an  ordinance  of  the  Common  Council,  passed  on 
tlie  5th  of  September,  1853,  the  Mayor,  Comptroller,  and 
Treasurer  were  authorized  to  issue  bonds  of  the  city 
sufficient  to  obtain  an  amount  equal  to  its  floating  in- 
debtness,  with  an  additional  sum  of  three  hundred  and 
fifty  thousand  dollars,  ($350,000)  for  school,  hospital, 
and  fire  purposes.  In  accordance  with  the  provisions  of 
such  ordinance,  proposals  were  advertised  for,  to  be  re- 
ceived and  opened  by  the  officers  empowered  on  the 
25th  of  the  past  month,  they  reserving  to  themselves 
the  right  of  rejection;  and  although  it  is  a  matter  of 
regret  that  bids  w^ere  received  for  only  a  portion  of  the 
amount,  and  at  figures  which  would  not  justify  their 
acceptance,  no  difficulty  is  apprehended  in  disposing  of 
the  whole  amount  authorized  and  required,  at  an  early 
day,  at  prices  within  the  bounds  of  reason,  and  approxi- 
mate to  their  intrinsic  value.  Upon  the  accomplishment 
of  the  sale,  the  present  floating  debt  will  be  extinguished. 
The  funded  debt  will  then  amount  to  the  sum  of  about 
$2,350,000 — the  early  reduction  of  which  amount  will 
be  produced  by  the  provisions  of  the  ordinance  requiring 
the  annual  raising  by  taxation,  in  addition  to  the  amount 
levied  for  other  purposes,  of  a  sum  sufficient  to  pay  the 


CORNELIUS   K.    GARRISON.  149 

interestj  and  one-twelfth  of  the  principal,  of  the  new 
issue,  together  with  the  sum  of  fifty  thousand  dollars 
annually  raised  for  the  liquidation  of  the  ten  per  cents., 
and  the  obtainment  of  interest  upon  the  said  amounts 
yearly  invested. 

The  extinction  of  her  floating  debt  will  enable  the 
city  hereafter,  if  due  regard  is  had  to  economy,  to  meet 
all  her  liabilities  in  cash,  thus  ridding  her  of  the  scrip 
system  of  payment,  and  resulting  in  a  saving  of  at  least 
twenty-five  per  cent,  in  her  ordinary  expenditures.  The 
city  treasury  alone  has  been  the  sufierer  from  the  past 
mode  of  discharging  her  obligations. 

The  scrip  system,  founded  as  it  was  in  corruption, 
has  exercised  an  influence  not  only  detrimental  to  the 
treasury,  but  pernicious  in  its  eff"ects  upon  the  public 
ofiicers  and  the  people.  It  has  led  to  speculations,  ex- 
travagancies, and  malfeasance  in  the  public  departments, 
and  exposed  the  treasury  to  ruinous  abuses,  resulting  in 
a  debasement  of  the  city  credit  to  a  bankrupt  state.  A 
credit  system,  such  as  this  has  been,  if  persevered  in, 
will  sink  us  so  deep  in  embarrassment,  as  to  call  forth 
the  just  indignation  of  our  people,  and  remain  a  stigma 
upon  our  Legislature  for  ever.  I  congratulate  the  Coun- 
cil upon  the  prospect  of  a  speedy  removal  of  this  in- 
cubus from  the  body  corporate,  and  the  elevation  of  our 
credit  beyond  the  reach  of  speculation  and  the  fluctua- 
tion of  the  street. 

The  expenses  of  the  city  from  July  1  to  October  22, 
as  per  Comptroller's  statement,  amounted  to  the  follow- 
ing: 

Warrants  issued,      -         -         -       $240,975  62 
Bills  not  audited,     -         -         -  14,052  37 

A  portion  of  which  has  not  been  paid  by  the  Treasurer. 

The  Mayor  then  submits  a  lengthy  detailed  statement 
of  the  condition  of  the  city's  finances,  giving  the  receipts 
and  expenditures  from  the  commencement  of  the  fiscal 
year,  July  1,  1853,  to  October  23d,  1853,  and  also  an 
estimate  of  the  resources  and  expenses  for  the  remainder 
of  the  fiscal  year,  embracing  a  formidable  array  of  figures 
which  would,  perhaps,  fail  to  interest  the  general  reader. 


150  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

It  will  be  noted  that  there  is  an  increase,  this  year, 
of  $143,000,  in  the  amount  of  taxes  levied  over  the 
preceding  year.  While  this  increase  is  commented  upon, 
and  complaint  founded  upon  it,  it  should  be  borne  in  mind 
that  a  most  liberal  estimate  has  been  placed  upon  the 
property  subject  to  taxation,  by  the  valuations  of  the  As- 
sessors, a  fact  well  known  to  every  tax-paying  citizen. 

The  whole  amount  returned  by  the  Assessors  this  year, 
as  liable  to  taxation,  is  $28,500,000.  No  one  who  is  the 
least  conversant  with  the  subject,  can  deny  that  the 
amount  should  be  nearer  $40,000,000;  a  closer  ap- 
proximation to  which  should  be  reached  by  the  officers, 
upon  whom  the  duty  devolves,  thereby  reducing  the  per 
centage  to  its  proper  standard.  It  should  also  be  re- 
membered that  our  city  is  growing  and  extending  rapidly, 
and  new  calls  are  constantly  made  upon  her  for  the  means 
of  necessary  improvements,  increasing  as  we  are,  daily,  in 
population,  and  being  compelled  to  accede  the  privileges 
and  benefits  of  government  to  a  larger  number  of  citizens, 
over  a  wider  extent  of  jurisdiction,  a  reduction  in  the 
present  amount  of  taxation  cannot  be  looked  for. 

Our  citizens,  when  complaining  of  the  burdens  of 
taxation,  and  comparing  them  with  other  cities,  should 
not  forget  that  while  they  are  paying  to  the  support  of 
their  government,  two  per  cent,  upon  their  property,  at 
very  low  valuations,  they  are  paying  much  less  than  the 
citizens  of  any  other  city  on  the  continent,  perhaps  in  the 
world,  in  comparison  to  the  relative  value  of  money  and 
the  enormous  revenues  derived  from  real  estate.  In  our 
sister  cities,  the  property-holder  willingly  submits  to  the 
imposition  of  a  tax  of  one  per  cent,  upon  his  estate,  while 
the  revenue  he  receives  from  it  seldom  exceeds  six  per 
cent,  per  annum.  Here,  where  the  revenue  derived  from 
money  and  property  is  from  five  to  six  times  as  great, 
and  the  tax  levied  only  double  in  per  cent.,  the  common 
and  popular  cry  of  onerous  taxation  is  not,  certainly, 
founded  on  fact  or  good  reasoning.  At  the  same  time, 
it  is  your  duty,  and  I  shall  make  it  my  especial  duty,  to 
see  that  our  citizens  are  not  called  upon  to  pay  more 
than  is  actually  required  to  carry  on  the  government 


CORNELIUS   K.    GARRISON.  151 

justly  and  economically;  hesitating  to  open  new  sources 
of  expenditure,  unless  actually  necessary  to  the  proper 
and  good  government  of  our  city. 

I  would  recommend  that  early  measures  be  taken  to 
procure  authority  from  the  Legislature  for  the  taxation  of 
non-resident  capital,  millions  of  which  is  now  invested  in 
this  city,  enjoying  all  the  benefits  and  protection  of  the 
government  in  its  employment,  without  contributing  in 
the  least  for  the  cost  of  its  maintenance,  thus  throwing 
an  amount  of  taxation  upon  our  people  which  they  should 
not  in  justice  be  called  upon  to  bear.  The  importance 
of  this  matter  must  be  obvious  to  all,  and  I  trust  it  will 
receive  your  early  and  serious  attention. 

A  great  falling  off  in  the  receipts  of  the  city  from 
licenses  has  taken  place  this  year,  in  consequence  of 
the  defects  in  the  license  law.  Without  undertaking  to 
enter  into  the  question  of  the  justice  or  legality  of  the 
provisions  demurred  to,  I  would  suggest  that  your  im- 
mediate attention  should  be  given  to  the  subject,  and 
prompt  and  decided  steps  taken  to  remedy  the  evils  com- 
plained of,  and  save  the  treasury  from  the  great  loss  that 
must  en-sue  if  the  present  provisions  of  the  law  are  in- 
sisted upon. 

It  is  a  source  of  pride  and  satisfaction  to  me,  as  it  must 
be  to  you  and  our  citizens  at  large,  to  know  that  the 
interest  upon  the  Funded  Debt  was  promptly  paid  on  the 
1st  instant;  in  addition  to  which  the  sum  of  fifty  thousand 
dollars  has  been  paid  over  to  the  Commissioners  on  ac- 
count of  the  redemption  of  the  bonds. 

The  punctual  payment  of  our  interest  has  imparted  an 
increased  confidence  to  holders,  and  enhanced  our  credit 
at  home  and  abroad. 

The  greater  portion  of  the  contracts  entered  into  by 
the  city,  for  the  construction  of  wharves  on  the  city  front, 
have  been  complied  with,  and  the  majority  of  them  are 
paying  a  revenue  to  the  city. 

There  are  litigations  pending  in  connection  with  a 
portion  of  them,  which  it  is  hoped  will  soon  reach 
favorable  terminations. 

Monuments  of  man's  enterprise  and  the  commercial 


152  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

greatness  of  our  city,  they  cannot  but  excite  in  us  feelings 
of  pride  and  admiration. 

The  work  of  grading,  planking,  and  improving  our 
public  streets,  has  been  for  some  time  in  prosecution.  It 
is  to  be  regretted  that  a  commencement  had  not  been 
earlier  made,  and  more  vigorous  efforts  used  towards 
comj^letion  before  the  setting  in  of  the  wet  season. 

A  tardiness  has  been  manifested  in  the  fulfilment  of 
contracts,  which  merits  and  should  receive  the  condemna- 
tion of  the  department,  and  subject  the  delinquent  con- 
tractors to  forfeiture  of  their  contracts. 

Many  abuses  have  existed  in  this  department  of  the 
government;  contracts  have  been  loosely,  and  in  some 
cases,  illegally  entered  into,  involving  the  expenditure  of 
immense  sums  of  money,  and  conflicting  with  the  rights 
and  privileges  of  citizens.  It  is  due  to  the  property- 
owners  and  to  the  interests  of  the  city,  that  the  attention 
of  the  Council  should  be  given  to  a  thorough  investiga- 
tion and  remodeling  of  the  contract  system,  in  order  to 
preserve  the  city  from  the  expense  of  endless  litigations, 
which  must  ensue  if  the  contracts  are  not  properly  and 
legally  entered  into  and  complied  with. 
The  total  amount  of  assessments  levied  for 

street  improvements,  is  -  -  -  $927,444  21 
Of -which  the  city  pays  for  crossings,       -         127,643  21 


Amount  to  be  borne  by  property-owners,  $709,801  00 
Of  which  has  been  suspended  for  your  in- 
vestigation, -----  524^379  71 
Should  your  investigations  prove  that  these  -contracts 
cannot  be  sustained  by  law,  and  that  the  city  and  the 
property-owners  are  liable  to  be  drawn  into  collision  in 
consequence,  I  would  recommend  that  new  lettings  be. 
made  in  due  form,  payable  in  cash,  and  the  amounts  re- 
duced from  the  credit  to  the  cash  system,  thus  saving  a 
large  amount  to  the  owners  of  property,  while  the  con- 
tractors will  not  suffer,  but  rather  gnin  by  the  change. 

It  is  worthy  of  your  consideration  v^hether  a  cor- 
responding reduction  cannot  be  made  in  the  expenses  of 
the  other  departments,  whicji  I  have  no  doubt  can  be 


CORNELIUS   K.    GARRISON.  153 

effected  without  doing  the  least  possible  injustice,  or  re- 
ducing the  actual  compensation  of  any  person. 

The  contingent  fund,  which  now  reaches  annually  an 
enormous  amount,  needs  your  attention  and  examination. 
It  is  this  fund  from  which  generally  spring  the  leakages 
of  large  corporations,  and  the  Council  cannot  be  too 
jealous  of  its  continued  increase. 

I  would  recommend  that  vigorous  measures  be  adopted 
for  the  immediate  recovery  of  the  claims  held  by  the  city 
for  unpaid  assessments,  a  large  amount  of  which  has  been 
allowed  to  sleep  for  a  long  time  past,  without  any  means 
being  taken  to  enforce  their  collection. 

I  would  also  recommend  an  early  sale  of  the  city 
property  other  than  that  required  for  city  purposes.  The 
wealth  of  the  city  in  propert}^  now  wrongfully  detained 
from  her  by  other  parties  is  sufficient,  if  made  available, 
to  liquidate  her  whole  indebtedness,  create  a  fund  ample 
for  the  purposes  of  education,  and  remove  all  fears  of 
future  embarrassment.  Measures  should  be  taken  to 
place  her  in  possession  of  her  just  rights,  which  have 
been  so  long  neglected  and  withheld  from  her.  There  is 
no  good  reason  why  she  should  be  deprived  of  the  bene- 
fits of  so  much  wealth,  and  others  be  permitted,  without 
the  shadow  of  right,  to  enjoy  its  revenues,  while  she  is 
groaning  under  the  burdens  of  indebtedness. 

The  condition  of  our  public  schools  is  such  as  to  call 
for  the  most  prompt  and  effective  action  of  the  Common 
Council. 

It  seems  that  this  branch  of  the  public  service  has 
not  received  that  attention  and  fostering  care  which  its 
great  importance  demands.  I  regret  to  find  that  while 
lavish  appropriations  have  heretofore  been  made  for,  and 
unscrupulously  squandered  on,  other  branches  of  the 
government,  our  schools — the  nurseries  of  the  future 
greatness  of  oin-  people — have  been  inexcusably  neglected. 

The  buildings  in  which  the  children  of  our  city  are 
daily  congregated  for  purposes  of  instruction,  are  totally 
unfit  for  the  uses  intended.  Mere  shanties,  erected  with- 
out regard  to  health,  convenience,  or  moral  fitness  of 
locality,  they  are  disgraceful  to  the  city  and  the  times, 


154  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC, 

and  entirely  inadequate  to  the  requirements  and  spirit 
of  that  system  of  education  which  has  long  been  the  ad- 
miration of  the  world  ^  and  to  which  we  must  look  for 
the  perpetuity  of  our  nationality. 

The  world  knows,  and  I  trust  we  not  only  know  but 
feel,  that  popular  education  is  the  guiding-star  of  the 
Republic,  the  secret  of  American  greatness:  therefore,  to 
neglect  it  is  criminal — to  bend  all  our  energies  to  its 
most  complete  perfection  is  our  duty. 

I  would  impress  upon  you  the  great  necessity  of 
speedy  steps  being  taken  for  the  erection  and  furnishing 
of  suitable  buildings,  of  substantial  construction,  well 
ventilated,  and  adapted  to  the  healthful  and  proper  edu- 
cation of  the  children  of  the  city.  There  are  portions 
of  the  School  Lands  now  used  for  other  and  improper 
purposes:  these  should  be  immediately  reclaimed  and 
devoted  entirely  to  the  purposes  for  which  they  were 
designed.  The  buildings  should  be  properly  fenced,  and 
playgrounds  should  also  be  set  apart  for  the  children  in 
the  intervals  of  study,  as  care  should  be  taken  of  their 
physical  health  as  well  as  their  mental  culture. 

The  amount  of  $100,000,  upon  the  negotiation  of  the 
new  issue  of  bonds,  will  be  devoted  to  school  purposes. 
This  sum  will  do  much  towards  the  accomplishment  of 
the  desired  end,  and  place  our  common  schools  in  a  con- 
dition that  will  reflect  honor  and  lustre  upon  the  system, 
instead  of  being,  as  at  present,  ineflPective  in  its  opera- 
tion and  reproachful  to  the  city.  It  is  only  to  be  re- 
gretted that  your  predecessors  had  not  a  more  enlarged 
idea  of  the  educational  system,  and  had  not  set  apart  a 
greater  sum  for  this  purpose. 

The  want  of  an  asylum  or  House  of  Refuge  for  juv- 
enile delinquents  is  severely  felt,  and  the  establishment 
of  a  properly  organized  institution  for  their  confinement 
and  reformation,  should  engage  your  warmest  sympathies 
and  early  action.  The  present  mode  of  consigning  our 
youthful  criminals  to  the  cells  of  the  city  prison,  is  pro- 
ductive of  the  most  pernicious  effects  to  them  and  to  the 
community  at  large.  Thrown  in  contact,  as  they  now 
are,  with  the  vicious  and  the  hardened,  they  emerge  from 


CORNELIUS   K.    GARRISON.  155 

their  place  of  durance  only  to  enter  upon  new  scenes  of 
vice  and  pursue  bolder  degrees  of  crime.  The  establish- 
ment of  a  House  of  Industry  for  their  benefit,  I  think,  is 
deserving  of  your  serious  attention,  not  only  as  guardians 
of  the  public  weal,  but  as  philanthropists  and  enlight- 
ened men. 

The  ladies  of  San  Francisco,  with  that  benevolence 
and  laudable  zeal  which  is  so  characteristic  of  their  sex, 
I  am  happy  to  be  able  to  say,  have  taken  the  orphan 
children  of  our  city  under  their  especial  care  and  protec- 
tion. A  commodious  building  for  their  accommodation 
has  nearly  reached  completion,  raised  altogether  by  their 
commendable  industry  and  exertions. 

If  there  is  any  thing  calculated  to  excite  our  warmest 
sympathies,  and  bring  into  life  the  purest  feelings  of 
man's  nature,  it  is  the  condition  of  the  lone  orphan, 
especially  in  this  distant  land,  where  he  is  often  left  with 
no  parent  hand  to  guide  him  through  the  mazes  of  a  city's 
wilderness,  no  parent's  tongue  to  teach  him  the  destinies 
he  was  born  to.  We  cannot  award  too  high  a  meed  of 
praise  to  those  ladies  who  have  so  nobly,  diligently,  and 
successfully  labored  in  the  orphan's  behalf. 

The  condition  of  our  public  streets  is  a  subject  of 
serious  complaint.  Health  and  cleanliness  demand  that 
means  should  be  taken  to  stringently  enforce  the  city 
ordinances,  and  to  prevent  our  thoroughfares  being  made 
the  common  depositories  for  refuse  and  garbage,  and  to 
secure  the  infliction  and  rigid  collections  of  fines  for 
every  violation  of  those  ordinances.  The  occupants  of 
the  different  markets  within  the  city  should  be  compelled 
to  remove  all  their  refuse  matter  beyond  the  city  limits, 
thus  preserving  some  degree  of  cleanliness  in  those  local- 
ities. It  is  due  to  our  constituents  that  some  regard 
should  be  paid  to  their  health  and  comfort ;  and  although 
the  condition  of  the  treasury  will  not  warrant  the  ex- 
penditure of  large  sums  for  the  purpose,  an  honest  at- 
tempt, at  least,  should  be  made  to  mitigate,  as  far  as 
possible,  the  evils  of  which  just  complaint  is  made.  I 
would  suggest  that  inquiries  be  instituted  to  ascertain  the 
expense  of  keeping  the  streets  in  good  condition. 


156  EEPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

The  temporary  suspension  of  the  works  of  the  Mount- 
ain Lake  Water  Company,  in  their  present  advanced 
state,  is  to  be  deplored.  That  such  an  important  under- 
taking has  not  met  with  more  earnest  encouragement 
and  pecuniary  aid,  is  unfortunate.  I  am  happy,  however, 
to  be  able  to  say  that  there  is  every  prospect  of  an  early 
resumption  of  their  work,  and  of  an  abundant  supply 
of  pure  and  wholesome  water  being  introduced  into  the 
city.  The  projectors  of  this  enterprise  are  entitled  to 
the  gratitude  of  the  community  for  the  public  spirit 
which  has  guided  their  endeavors  to  procure  for  our 
citizens  benefits  so  decided  and  invaluable. 

The  works  of  the  San  Francisco  Gas  Company  are 
reaching  a  speedy  consummation.  The  laying  of  pipes 
through  the  streets  has  for  some  days  been  in  progress, 
and  in  a  few  weeks  we  shall  be  enjoying  another  of  the 
fruits  of  a  concentrated  and  well-directed  use  of  capital. 

I  would  urge  upon  your  honorable  body  the  import- 
ance of  some  plan  being  adopted  for  the  improvement 
of  the  public  Plaza,  and  would  recommend  its  being 
properly  graded,  curbed,  and  enclosed  with  a  neat  and 
substantial  railing ;  sodding  and  ornamenting  it  in  such  a 
manner  as  will  render  it  an  agreeable  promenade  instead 
of  its  remaining,  as  it  now  is  and  has  long  been,  a  public 
nuisance  and  disgrace.  The  plan  of  loaning  the  parks 
of  the  city  for  purposes  of  private  speculation  and  gain, 
merits,  I  think,  the  condemnation  of  us  all. 

The  condition  of  the  Fire  Department  is  a  source  of 
pride  and  gratification.  It  numbers  thirteen  engines, 
thirteen  hose  carriages,  and  three  hook  and  ladder  com- 
panies, all  in  a  complete  state  of  effective  organization, 
with  twelve  hundred  names  of  members  upon  the  rolls 
of  the' department. 

I  cannot  too  highly  commend  the  honorable  zeal  with 
which  the  members  of  this  department  respond  to  the 
frequent  calls  for  their  services,  and  their  great  fidelity 
to  the  trust  reposed  in  them.  Millions  of  dollars'  worth 
of  property  has  been  saved  to  us  by  their  prompt  and 
united  action,  and  a  sentiment  of  pride  and  confidence 
imparted  to  the  public  mind,  reflecting  honor  upon  the 


CORNELIUS   K.    GARRISON.  157 

one  and  engendering  a  feeling  of  security  in  the  other. 
As  the  members  of  this  department  devote  their  valuable 
services  to  the  city,  without  pay  or  reward,  hazarding, 
and  too  often  sacrificing  their  lives,  in  the  performance 
of  their  arduous  duties,  they  deserve  and  should  recei\e 
our  warmest  acknowledgement  and  fostering  care.  Meas- 
ures should  at  once  be  taken  for  the  constt-uction  of 
buildings  suitable  for  the  accommodation  of  their  appar- 
atus, and  the  purchase  of  new  engines,  in  accordance  with 
the  provisions  of  the  ordinance  authorizing  the  setting 
apart  a  portion  of  the  proceeds  of  the  further  issue  of 
bonds  for  that  purpose. 

In  the  estimate  for  the  expenses  of  this  department 
will  be  found  included  an  item  of  $7,000  for  the  con- 
struction of  seven  new  cisterns,  which  are  needed  in  cer- 
tain portions  of  the  city,  now  deprived  of  the  protection 
they  furnish,  in  cases  of  conflagration.  I  would  recom- 
mend that  an  appropriation  be  made  for  the  immediate 
building  of  the  number  specified.  Those  now  in  use, 
numbering  thirty-eight,  with  the  proposed  addition,  it  is 
thought,  will  furnish  an  ample  supply  of  water  to  meet  the 
requirements  of  the  department  in  ordinary  emergencies. 

A  prolific  source  of  complaint  on  the  part  of  our  cit- 
izens and  strangers  who  are  daily  landing  on  our  shores, 
is  found  in  the  system  of  extortion  practiced  by  the 
licensed  hack-drivers  of  the  city.  I  would,  therefore,  re- 
commend that  a  tariff  of  fair  and  remunerative  rates  be 
established  for  the  conveyance  of  persons  from  one  portion 
of  the  city  to  another,  and  that  penalties  should  be  en- 
acted and  rigidly  enforced  in  all  cases  of  violation;  thus 
securing  to  the  honest  hackman  his  just  compensation, 
and  relieving  our  citizens  and  strangers  from  the  annoy- 
ances and  exactions  that  they  have  heretofore  been  com- 
pelled to  submit  to. 

I  would  call  the  attention  of  the  Common  Council  to 
the  open  and  public  manner  in  which  gambling  is  carried 
on  in  this  city;  and,  although  I  cannot  look  to  the  ex- 
tinguishment of  this  vice  from  the  community  at  the 
present  day,  I  would  recommend  that  some  means  be 
taken  to   hide  this  source  of  human  misery  and  shame 


158  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

from  the  public  gaze.  As  now  openly  practiced,  its 
effects  are  most  demoralizing  upon  the  community,  not 
only  drawing  into  the  threads  of  its  nets  those  in  high 
standing,  tempting  the  hardy  toiler  from  the  paths  of 
honest  labor,  but  germinating  and  encouraging  in  the 
youth  of  our  city  habits  of  indolence  and  desires  fo^  dis- 
honest gain,  that  lay  the  foundations  and  nurse  the 
promptings  of  crime. 

Sunday  evening  theatricals,  I  think,  in  this  enlight- 
ened age,  call  for  a  rebuke  at  the  hands  of  the  city  gov- 
ernment, and  I  would  recommend  that  an  ordinance  be 
adopted  for  the  prevention  of  their  enactment.  As  a 
man  to  be  great  must  be  good,  so  a  city  and  a  people 
must  observe  the  dictates  of  morality,  if  it  is  their  am- 
bition to  rise  to  the  high  summits  of  human  glory.  It  is 
to  be  hoped  that  the  right-thinking  portion  of  our  com- 
munity will  lend  their  example  and  influence  to  the 
exterminating  of  habits  and  customs  which  are  inclined 
to  smother  or  destroy  the  best  impulses  of  our  nature. 
No  nobler  sight  can  greet  the  eye  of  man  than  could  be 
witnessed  from  the  hill-tops  that  surround  us — a  people 
the  most  industrious  and  enterprising  upon  the  face  of 
the  globe;  resting,  as  they  here  can  rest,  in  the  midst  of 
plenitude  and  peace,  from  the  labors  of  the  week;  re- 
buking so  signally  the  acts  of  lawlessness  and  disorder, 
showing  some  degree  of  thankfulness  for  the  blessings 
which  are  here  so  abundant,  and  asserting  so  effectively 
the  power  and  greatness  of  free  government. 

In  conclusion,  I  cannot  resist  the  opportunity  of  con- 
gratulating you  and  my  fellow-citizens  upon  the  rapid 
growth  of  our  city,  the  great  improvements  constantly 
being  made  in  the  extent  and  architecture  of  our  build- 
ings, the  public  spirit  and  private  enterprise  so  visible  in 
every  street,  affording,  as  they  do,  such  substantial  proofs 
of  our  increasing  wealth  and  prosperity.  No  city  of  a 
century  can  boast  finer  structures  than  now  grace  this 
city  of  a  day.  The  world  cannot  afford  such  evidences 
of  the  power  of  mind  over  matter  as  the  eye  constantly 
rests  upon  here. 

The  certain  and  early  building  of  the  great  Pacific 


CORNELIUS  K.    GARRISON.  159 

Railroad,  which  has  not  only  agitated  the  public  mind 
of  this  city,  but  also  of  the  older  States  of  the  Union, 
will  at  no  distant  day  bring  us  in  close  proximity  to  the 
heart  of  our  Union.  Its  want  is  not  only  felt  here,  but 
in  New  York,  the  commercial  centre  of  the  Eepublic. 
There,  the  golden  ores  which  we  have  dug  from  our 
mountains,  and  washed  from  our  river  banks,  could  soon 
be  given  to  the  smelter,  to  be  rolled  into  rails  (golden 
rails  they  will  prove  to  California  and  to  the  United 
States)  to  be  stretched  across  the  Plains,  uniting  the  two 
great  emporiums  of  the  western  world. 

In  connection  with  the  Pacific  Railroad,  I  would  re- 
mark that  a  company  has  lately  been  organized  in  this 
city,  composed  of  gentlemen  of  wealth  and  enterprise, 
for  the  formation  of  a  line  of  steamers,  to  ply  between 
San  Francisco  and  the  ports  of  China,  with  every  en- 
couragement of  its  being  carried  into  active  operation; 
thus  not  only  connecting  us  directly  with  the  Celestial 
Empire,  but,  by  means  of  steamers  now  placed  on  the 
route  from  Honolulu  to  the  Isles  of  the  Pacific,  making 
this  the  port  of  entry  to  the  whole  trade  with  the  Indies 
and  the  Pacific.  Even  now,  our  exports  are  more  than 
equal  to  the  entire  cotton  crop  of  the  Southern  States, 
hitherto  the  principal  staple  our  whole  country  has  de- 
pended on  for  the  payment  of  her  indebtedness  abroad, 
the  place  of  which  we  have  in  a  great  measure  supplied, 
and,  without  doubt,  saved  the  nation  from,  dishonor  abroad 
and  bankruptcy  at  home. 

The  telegraph  wires  are  already  skirting  our  hillsides 
and  leaping  our  valleys,  connecting  us  with  the  cities  of 
the  interior,  and  drawing  them  into  closer  harmony  and 
conmiunication  with  the  metropolis. 

Great  and  wonderful  as  has  been  the  sudden  growth 
of  San  Francisco,  progressing,  as  she  is,  rapidly  in  all 
the  arts  of  peace,  and  enjoying  so  many  of  the  fruits  of 
science — faithful  and  enlightened  legislation,  and  the 
liberal  education  of  the  generation  who  are  to  succeed 
us,  will  alone  secure  to  her  the  brilliant  future  that  is 
promised. 

San  Feancisco,  Nov.  15,  1853. 


160  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

The  cause  of  education  in  California  owes  much  to 
the  substantial  aid  extended  by  Mr.  Garrison.  When 
money  was  delayed  at  the  proper  source  for  the  building 
of  school-houses,  and  work  had  ceased,  he  advanced  the 
required  sums  from  his  own  resources.  And  his  sym- 
pathies have  always  been  with  the  poor  and  lowly.  He 
established  the  first  African  school  in  San  Francisco, 
holding  at  that  early  day  that,  as  the  negroes  were 
eventually  to  become  citizens,  the  proper  way  to  prepare 
them  for  that  condition  was  by  education.   ■ 

Two  great  subjects,  especially  interesting  to  his  emi- 
nently practical  turn  of  mind,  Avere  never  lost  sight  of — 
a  steamship  line  to  China  and  Australia,  and  the  explora- 
tion of  a  route  for  the  Pacific  Railroad.  Not  long  after 
assuming  the  duties  of  his  office,  he  urged  public  action 
to  these  points,  and  he  was  repeatedly  a  member  of  com- 
mittees appointed  to  report  to  public  meetings  on  the  subject 
of  a  railroad.  His  name  heads  the  list  of  subscribers  to 
this  object.  He  was  also  the  first  cash  subscriber  in  a 
large  amount  to  build  a  telegraph  line  over  the  Sierras,  to 
demonstrate  the  feasibility  of  an  overland  telegraph  line 
between  San  Francisco  and  New  York. 

There  can  scarcely  be  mentioned  a  charitable  enterprise 
in  those  days  to  which  Mr.  Garrison  was  not  a  liberal  con- 
tributor. It  is  typical  of  the  man  that,  during  the  whole 
of  his  term  as  Mayor,  he  served  the  public  gratuitously — 
having  at  the  close  of  that  term  drawn  a  check  for  the 
entire  amount  of  his  salary,  which  he  divided  equally 
between  the  Catholic  and  Protestant  Orphan  Asylums. 
The  Ladies'  Relief  Society,  the  Mercantile  Library  Asso- 
ciation, of  which  he  was  created  a  life  member,  and  many 
churches,  were  the  richer  for  his  open-handed  donations, 
while  innumerable  indigent  applicants  for  a  free  passage 
in  his  steamers  joyfully  acknowledged  his  broadcast  and 
never -failing  benevolence.  In  the  early  years  of  the 
California  fever,  hundreds  of  destitute  people,  continually 
collecting  at  Panama,  were  gratuitously  forwarded  thence 
to  San  Francisco  at  a  personal  expense  to  him  of  many 
thousands  of  dollars. 

In  September,  1853,  Mr.  Garrison  headed  a  move- 


CORNELIUS   K.    GARRISON.  161 

merit  in  San  Francisco  of  the  former  citizens  of  Louisi- 
ana, to  take  measures  to  relieve  their  fellow-citizens  of 
New  Orleans  who  were  suffering  from  the  dreadful 
ravages  of  yellow  fever,  which  in  that  year  exceeded  in 
virulence  any  thing  then  known.  During  the  month  of 
August,  there  had  been  5,229  deaths.  The  appeal  was 
eloquent  and  forcible.  Mr.  Garrison  contributed  lavishly 
to  this  charity;  and  the  Germans,  vrho  held  a  special 
meeting  to  adopt  measures  for  the  relief  of  their  fellow- 
countrymen  who  were  being  decimated  by  the  destroyer, 
passed  a  vote  of  thanks  to  Mr.  Garrison  for  his  friendly 
offer  to  remit  all  the  funds  free  of  charge  to  New  Orleans. 
An  instance,  out  of  many  of  a  similar  kind,  may  be 
selected  as  exhibiting  Mr.  Garrison's  peculiarly  decisive 
manner  of  dealing  with  circumstances.  During  his  term 
as  Mayor,  a  noted  speculator  and  his  gang,  iu  April,  1854, 
commenced  driving  a  line  of  piles,  by  night,  across  the 
dock  from  the  end  of  Long  wharf,  to  that  of  Clay  street 
wharf,  thereby  obstructing  navigation,  injuring  the  har- 
bor, and  jeopardizing  the  city's  title  to  property  of  im- 
mense value.  Shortly  after  midnight,  Mr.  Garrison,  having 
been  informed  of  the  facts,  repaired  to  the  spot,  and  the 
exciting  scene  that  ensued  is  still  fresh  in  the  memory 
of  those  who  witnessed  it.  He  found  the  police  force 
overawed  by  the  defiant  bearing  of  the  parties.  The 
Marshal  refused  to  obey  the  Mayor's  orders  to  arrest  the 
rioters,  ostensibly  on  the  ground  that  the  authority  was 
insufficient.  Upon  this,  Mr.  Garrison,  acting  with  his  cus- 
tomary resolution,  took  the  affair  into  his  own  hands,  met 
the  desperadoes  with  their  own  weapons,  regardless  of 
threats,  and,  it  is  sufficient  to  say,  he  summarily  termin- 
ated the  lawless  proceedings,  amid  the  cheers  of  the  great 
crowd  who  had  collected  upon  the  wharves  awaiting  the 
event.  The  example  was  highly  beneficial  as  a  prec- 
edent for  subsequent  occasions  of  a  like  nature.  In  July 
following,  a  similar  scene  occurred  on  Montgomery  street, 
where  an  attempt  was  made  to  fence  off  Merchant  street. 
The  Marshal  having  again  refused  to  obey  the  Mayor's 
orders  to  arrest  the  parties,  Mr.  Garrison  assumed  the 
personal  responsibility,  had  the  obstruction  instantly  torn 


162  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN   OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

down,  and  on  the  following  day,  impeached  the  Marshal, 
who  was  soon  o.fter  removed  from  office  by  unaminoua 
vote  of  the  Common  Council. 

In  the  year  1859,  Mr.  Garrison  returned  to  the  At- 
lantic States,  and  settled  in  New  York  city.  There  he 
became  at  once  known  as  a  bold  and  successful  financier — • 
a  man  of  vigorous  grasp  and  comprehensive  views — the 
weight  of  his  character  and  business  sagacity  being  felt 
in  the  heaviest  transactions  of  the  times.  He  is  to-day 
one  of  the  leading  steamship  proprietors  in  the  United 
States,  being  the  principal  owner  in  many  ocean  steamers. 

Now,  when  our  national  commerce  is  languishing 
under  discouragements  which  few  capitalists  are  willing 
to  encounter,  Mr.  Garrison  continues  to  maintain  the 
only  United  States  steamship  company  with  which  the 
Grovernment  has  a  mail  contract  carrying  the  American 
flag  on  the  Atlantic  ocean — the  important  line  between 
New  York  and  Brazil.  During  the  late  war,  he  camo 
promptly  with  all  his  remarkable  energies  to  the  support 
of  the  Grovernment,  and  with  his  steamships  rendered 
eminent  services  to  the  cause  of  the  Union.  It  was  at 
this  trying  epoch  that  his  sterling  patriotism  was  particu- 
larly displayed.  When  the  cause  looked  the  most  gloomy, 
and  capital  began  to  hesitate,  he  fitted  out,  mainly 
by  his  own  exertions,  Butler's  Ship-Island  expedition, 
and  became  personally  responsible  in  England  for  the 
principal  part  of  its  armament.  This  was  formally  ac- 
knowledged by  Mr.  Lincoln,  Secretary  Seward,  Mr.  Sum- 
ner, and  other  prominent  members  of  Congress. 

After  an  absence  from  California  of  about  ten  years, 
the  Commodore,  who,  in  times  past,  had  taken  so  con- 
spicuous a  part  in  ocean  steam  navigation,  especially  be- 
tween San  Francisco  and  New  York,  and  on  the  Pacific 
coast,  was  among  the  earliest  to  make  the  railroad  trip 
across  the  continent.  His  visit  to  the  metropolis  of  the 
Pacific  was  not  merely  to  seek  pleasure  and  recreation, 
but  also  to  build  substantial  improvements  upon  his  real 
estate,  principally  in  the  vicinity  of  the  city  front. 
Some  of  the  most  valuable  structures  in  that  part  of 
San  Francisco  have  been  erected  by  him,  and  a  consider- 
able portion  of  his  immense  fortune,  amounting  to  sev- 


CORNELIUS   K.    GARRISON.  1G3 

eral  millions  of  dollars,  is  invested  in  the  scene  of  his 
former  business  transactions. 

The  Commodore,  on  his  arrival  in  San  Francisco,  was 
met  on  all  sides  by  the  congratulations  of  his  many  friends 
on  his  evident  good  health,  and  kind  wishes  for  its  long 
continuance  followed  him  on  his  return  to  New  York. 

Just  one  week  prior  to  his  departure  from  San  Fran- 
cisco, he  received  the  following  invitation,  which,  it  will 
be  seen,  was  signed  by  the  leading  professional  and 
business  men  of  the  city: 

San  Francisco,  August  lOth,  1869. 
Hon.  C.  K  Garrison — Dear  Sir:  In  token  of  the  veiy  great  re- 
gard we  entertain  for  you,  both  on  account  of  your  public  services 
and  private  benefices  to  the  citizens  of  San  Francsico,  we,  your  old 
friends  and  associates,  beg  to  ask  your  acceptance  of  a  farewell 
dinner,  to  be  given  at  the  Maison  Doree,  on  Monday  evening, 
August  16th,  at  seven  o'clock. 

A.  J.  Bowie,  M.  D.,  Charles  E.  McLane, 

Edmond  L.  Goold,  William  Alvord, 

Peter  F.  Doling,  L.  L.  Robinson, 

Hon.  Henry  A.  Lyon,  O.  Eldridge, 

James  H.  Baird,  Hon.  Delos  Lake, 

Benj.  M.  Hartshorne,  Thomas  H.  Selby 

John  T.  Boyd,  Hall  McAllister,  ' 

William  C.  Ralston,  Joseph  P.  Hoge, 

L  Friedlander,  S.  M.  Wilson, 

D.  O.  Mills,  Charles  Mayne, 

E.  V.  Joice,  Hon.  Eugene  Sullivan, 

F.  J.  Weeks,  F.  L.  A.  Pioche, 
Joseph  A.  Donohoe,  A.  B.  Forbes, 
Lafayette  Maynard,             John  Benson, 
Lloyd  Tevis,                          George  H.  Howard, 
Jesse  Holladay,             *      William  Norris, 

J.  G.  Eastland,  H.  P.  Wakelee. 

Gen.  E.  D.  Keyes, 

This  invitation  was  accepted,  and  the  banquet  was 
served  with  the  most  sumptuous  and  elegant  appoint- 
ments. Hon.  Ogden  Hoffman,  United  States  District 
Judge ;  His  Excellency  Governor  Haight,  and  Hon.  Frank 
McCoppin,  Mayor  of  the  city,  were  present  as  invited 
guests.  Dr.  A.  J.  Bowie  presided,  and  made  the  follow- 
ing address : 

Gentlemen:  This  banquet  to-night,  to  the  Hon.  C.  K.  Gan'ison, 
was  prompted  by  a  desire  on  the  part  of  Mr.  Garrison's  friends  to 
convey  to  him,  first,  their  full  recognition  of  the  great  services  he 
had  rendered  to   this  community,    in  behalf  of  immigration   to 


164  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

our  city  and  State;  but  more  especially  because  of  his  personal  en- 
dearment to  the  early  surviving  settlers  and  residents  of  the  city  of 
San  Francisco.  AVe  can  scarcely  hope,  however  much  we  may  desire 
it,  that  Mr.  Garrison  wdll  again  venture  to  encounter  the  toil  of 
another  visit  to  our  city,  which  w^e  know  he  loves  so  w^ell,  and  to 
whose  development  and  growth  he  has  contributed  so  largely;  and 
therefore,  at  one  and  the  same  moment,  we  proclaim  our  pleasure 
at  receiving  him  and  our  regret  at  parting,  by  bidding  him  at  this 
banquet,  all  hail  and  farewell ! 

To  which  Mr.  Garrison  replied  as  follows : 

Gentlemen :  I  am  filled  wath  the  greatest  and  truest  emotion  at 
this  most  unexpected  and  flattering  entertainment  on  the  part  of  my 
old  friends.  If  I  had  required  any  incentive  beyond  what  had  been 
supplied  by  my  past  relations  with  California,  this  spectacle  of  so 
much  worth  and  intelligence  w^ould  urge  me  still  fuiiher  in  hope 
and  effort  to  develop  the  interests  of  this  mighty  country.  Gentle- 
men, my  heart  is  too  full  of  gratitude  for  this  splendid  ovation  to 
permit  me  to  do  aught  else  but  beg  you  will  accept  the  poverty  of 
my  language  to  express  my  full  feelings  of  gratitude. 

Messrs.  Judge  Delos  Lake,  Judge  Lyons,  Gen.  E.  D. 
Keyes,  W.  C.  Ealston,  Charles  E.  McLane,  Hall  McAllis- 
ter, Joseph  P.  Hoge,  J.  G.  Eastland,  and  others,  followed 
in  remarks  pertinent  to  the  occasion,  and  were  happy 
in  allusions  to  reminiscences  in  connection  with  the  past 
efforts  of  their  guest  toward  the  development  of  Cali- 
fornia. 

Mr.  Garrison's  distinguished  success  in  commercial 
affairs  is  due,  not  more  to  his  unconquerable  energy,  than 
to  an  unbending  integrity  manifested  in  all  the  relations 
of  life.  His  w^ord  is  proverbially  as  good  as  his  bond. 
Conservative  and  tolerant  in  his  intercourse  with  men, 
his  friendships  have  always  been  warm  and  intimate,  and 
are  life-long.  An  especially  prepossessing  address  and 
good  conversational  powers,  added  to  great  firmness  and 
force  of  character,  have  generally  enabled  him  to  in- 
fluence others  and  impress  them  with  the  soundness  of 
his  views.  Left  early  in  life  to  provide  for  himself,  he 
has  been  emphatically  the  architect  of  his  own  fortunes. 
In  looking  back  upon  his  business  career,  he  enjoys  the 
well-earned  consciousness  of  having  contributed  largely 
to  the  material  prosperity  of  the  country,  while  hundreds 
unremembered  by  him  still  cherish  the  memory  of  his 
charitable  deeds  and  whole-souled  generosity. 


^ 

UII7S 


OF  TB 


o» 


feyoE«"k^ 


THOMAS   STARR    KING 


THE  Editor  desires  to  assure  the  public  that  he  has  left 
no  stone  unturned  in  the  effort  to  obtain  an  original 
sketch  of  Rev.  Thomas  Starr  King.  The  career  of  this 
man  was  so  brilliant  and  eventful — in  the  brief  compass 
of  forty  years,  he  accomplished  such  mighty  purposes — 
that  his  life  and  deeds  deserve  to  be  chronicled  by  a  gifted 
and  practiced  pen,  entirely  familiar  and  in  harmony  with 
the  theme. 

For  the  purpose  of  securing  such  a  sketch,  the  Editor 
approached  or  communicated  with  many  of  the  most  pol- 
ished and  effective  writers  of  the  Pacific — and  also  of  the 
Atlantic  States — and  in  so  doing,  exhausted  the  list  of 
those  whom  he  knew  to  be  intimate  friends  and  admirers 
of  Mr.  King,  when  living,  and  whom  he  considered  com- 
petent to  the  task. 

All,  for  various  reasons,  declined  to  furnish  the  desired 
sketch.  Having  had  only  a  casual  introduction  to  Mr. 
King  a  few  years  before  his  death,  and  not  having  enjoyed 
any  intimacy  with  him ;  and  moreover,  knowing  nothing 
of  his  career  prior  to  his  arrival  in  California,  the  Editor 
felt  his  incapacity  to  treat  the  subject  properly,  and  had 
nearly  concluded  that  his  work  would  have  to  be  given 
to  the  public  in  an  incomplete  state,  owing  to  the  omission 
of  a  biographical  notice  of  this  truly  representative  man. 
But  a  short  time  before  the  manuscript  was  placed  in  the 
hands  of  the  printer,  he  was  presented  with  an  address 
read  a  few  days  after  the  decease  of  Mr.  King  before  the 
Unitarian  Society,  of  which  he  was  Pastor,  by  a  prom- 
inent citizen  of  San  Francisco,  who  had  for  several  years 
been  a  warm  personal  friend  of  Mr.  King,  and  who  had 
received  from  his  dying  lips  the  injunction  :  ''Keep  my 


166  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

memory  green."  This  gentleman  was  then,  as  he  had  for 
some  years  previously  been,  a  well  known  merchant,  and 
also  Superintendent  of  the  United  States  Branch  Mint  of 
San  Francisco.  The  description  of  the  death  scene  of 
Mr.  King,  of  which  the  author  was  an  unhappy  witness, 
is  fraught  with  absorbing  and  melancholy  interest. 

This  address,  however,  discloses  no  information  con- 
cerning Mr.  King's  ancestry,  birth,  boyhood,  or  any  por- 
tion of  his  career  passed  prior  to  his  arrival  in  California, 
but  the  San  Francisco  Bulletin^  on  the  day  of  Mr.  King's 
death,  contained  an  ably-written  editorial,  eulogistic  of 
his  splendid  talents  and  his  great  services  to  the  State. 
And  the  local  columns  of  that  journal  gave  a  brief  notice 
of  his  life,  on  the  same  day,  and,  a  few  days  later,  con- 
tained a  full  account  of  the  solemn  ceremonies  and  im- 
pressive scenes  attending  his  burial. 

These  articles  in  the  Bulletin  newspaper,  and  the  ad- 
dress alluded  to,  together  make  up  a  faithful  and  inter- 
esting history  of  Mr.  King ;  and  the  Editor  gives  place 
to  them  here,  in  lieu  of  an  original  sketch,  confident  that 
they  will  be  accepted  by  an  appreciative  public  as  a  wor- 
thy memorial  of  his  life  and  services. 

From  the  San  Francisco  Fvening  Bulletin j  March  4:tK  1864, 

The  ANNOUNCEMENT  of  the  death  of  the  Rev.  Thomas 
Starr  King  startles  the  community,  and  shocks  it  like 
the  loss  of  a  great  battle  or  tidings  of  a  sudden  and  un- 
dreamed-of public  calamity.  Certainly  no  other  man  on 
the  Pacific  Coast  would  be  missed  so  much.  San  Fran- 
cisco has  lost  one  of  her  chief  attractions  ;  the  State,  its 
noblest  orator  ;  the  country,  one  of  her  ablest  defenders. 
Mr.  King  had  been  less  than  four  years  in  California,  yet 
in  that  short  time  he  had  done  so  much  and  so  identified 
himself  with  its  best  interests,  that  scarcely  one  public 
institution  or  enterprise  of  philanthropy  exists  here 
which  will  not  feel  that  it  has  lost  a  champion.  He  was 
a  vast  power  which  any  struggling  good  work  could  com- 
mand. The  most  erudite  and  the  least  cultivated  were 
alike  charmed  by  the  eloquence  of  his  popular  addresses. 


THO^ilAS  STARR  KING.  167 

He  warmed  the  coldest  audience  into  enthusiasm.  Some 
said  it  was  his  musical  voice  ;  some  that  it  was  his  genial 
manner  ;  some  that  it  was  his  tact  in  feeling  his  audience 
and  humoring  it  until  every  fraction  of  it  was  '4n  sym- 
pathy" with  him,  when  he  boldly  led  off  to  the  point  he 
had  in  view  ;  some,  in  more  general  terms,  that  it  was  his 
commanding  genius  ;  some  that  it  was  the  merits  of  his 
cause,  which  it  was  his  gift  to  lift  up  and  present  in  its 
best  light,  that  accounted  for  his  sway  over  the  multitude ; 
but  on  this  all  agree,  friends  and  opponents,  that  while 
the  matter  was  in  his  hands  there  was  no  gainsaying  him. 
Few  public  speakers  were  bold  enough  of  choice  to  follow 
with  a  speech  after  he  had  spoken  ;  and  if  he  were  an- 
nounced, the  audience  was  never  satisfied  till  his  turn 
came. 

Mr.  King  had  grown  immensely  as  a  public  speaker 
since  he  left  the  East.  He  brought  with  him  a  most  en- 
viable reputation  as  a  literary  lecturer,  a  polished,  bril- 
liant writer  and  preacher.  Those  who  knew  him  con- 
gratulated California  on  his  coming  ;  they  said  he  would 
do  for  our  landscape  and  our  land  what  he  had  done  for 
New  Hampshire;  for  his  White  Hills^  their  Legends^  Land- 
scapes and  Poetry^  had  made  the  White  Mountains  classical, 
and  brought  them  within  the  circle  of  all  Eastern  sum- 
mer tourists.  The  most  sanguine  never  imagined  that  he 
would  become  the  power  that  he  quickly  proved  himself 
at  the  sterner,  harder  duties  that  engage  men  who  lay  the 
foundations  of  States.  He  used  to  say,  soon  after  he 
arrived  here,  and  when  he  found  how  much  greater  would 
be  his  influence  with  this  people  if  he  could  speak  as  well 
extempore  as  he  wrote,  that  he  would  give  anything  if  he 
had  the  ability  to  ^' think  on  his  feet."  ^'Beecher  has  it," 
said  he  ;  ''his  thoughts  come  trooping  in  never  so  swiftly, 
so  orderly,  and  in  such  force  as  while  on  his  feet  with  a 
great  audience  before  him — every  upturned  face  is  his  ally 
in  marshaling  his  grand  thoughts  ;  but  I  can't."  Few  men 
at  the  height  of  their  fame  venture  the  experiment  of  a 
new  style  of  address.  He  ventured,  and  every  one  who 
has  heard  his  later  off-hand  speeches  will  testify  how 
speedily  he  acquired  the  faculty  which  he  coveted — of 


168  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

thinking  on  his  feet — his  best  things  flashing  into  his  own 
mind  apparently  the  instant  that  they  flashed  through  it 
into  his  audience.  Mr.  King  introduced  himself  to  the 
San  Francisco  community  by  a  course  of  lectures  deliv- 
ered one  each  week  in  the  First  Congregational  Church, 
which  was  crowded  to  its  utmost  capacity  to  hear  them. 
It  is  safe  to  say  that  fifteen  minutes  after  he  began  the 
delivery  of  the  first  one,  his  position  as  an  incomparable 
lecturer  was  established.  That  series  had  been  delivered 
at  the  East.  Each  one  of  them  was  a  perfect  gem  in  its 
way.  Not  a  sentence  in  one  of  them  but  gleamed  with 
beauty.  The  rare  and  dainty  imagination  of  the  lecturer 
discovered  itself  in  every  phrase,  and  showed  him  a  poet 
in  the  disguise  of  prose.  The  skeptical  said  it  was  very 
pretty  writing  certainly,  but  they  doubted  his  depth.  The 
lectures  that  Mr.  King  wrote  here  were  of  altogether  a 
different  order.  He  availed  himself  of  that  injunction 
of  the  rhetoricians,  not  to  be  too  evenly  excellent  in 
your  style.  He  polished  his  sentences  less,  he  waited  no 
longer  on  fine  fancies ;  he  argued  more ;  he  dropped  down 
to  good  plain  talk  for  minutes  together  in  his  addresses; 
and  then,  when  his  hearers  were  rested,  he  blazed  out 
with  passages  that  swept  away  all  thoughts  but  of  the  one 
topic  that  possessed  him. 

Thomas  Starr  King  was  born  in  New  York,  Decem- 
ber 16th,  1824.  His  father  was  a  Universalist  minister, 
settled  in  1834  over  a  congregation  in  Charlestown,  Mass. 
At  the  time  of  his  father's  death,  Mr.  King  was  preparing 
to  enter  Harvard  College,  but  this  event  left  the  family 
in  a  manner  dependent  upon  him  for  support,  and  from 
the  age  of  twelve  to  twenty,  he  was  employed  either  as 
a  clerk  or  school  teacher.  All  this  while  he  was  an 
ardent  student;  scarcely  were  the  regular  duties  of  the 
day  done,  than  the  interregnum  found  him  at  his  desk; 
and  midnight  looked  in  upon  him  deep  in  books,  theologi- 
cal studies  claiming  his  attention  mainly.  Following  the 
bent  of  his  mind,  he  devoted  himself  to  the  ministry, 
preaching  his  first  sermon  in  the  town  of  Woburn,  in 
September,  1845.  He  subsequently  preached  at  Charles- 
town  to  the  congregation  of  which  his  father  liad  charge. 


THOMAS   STARR   KING.  169 

In  1848,  at  the  age  of  twenty-four,  he  was  called  to  pre- 
side over  the  Hollis  street  Unitarian  Church,  in  Boston. 
The  church  at  this  time  was  very  much  divided,  so  much 
so  that  it  was  feared  that  harmony  could  not  be  restored. 
Under  the  ministry  of  the  energetic  young  pastor,  how- 
ever, peace  once  more  came  to  its  councils;  the  church 
grew  rapidly  in  strength;  and  when  Mr.  King  left,  it  en- 
joyed a  prosperity  unprecedented  in  its  history.  The 
same  genial  and  sympathetic  manners  which  won  him 
the  affections  of  the  whole  people  of  this  city,  as  well  as 
of  his  immediate  congregation,  endeared  him  to  the  con- 
gregation of  which  he  had  charge  in  Boston ;  and  when 
he  announced  to  the  latter  his  intention  of  changing  his 
residence  and  making  this  coast  the  scene  of  his  future 
labors,  a  storm  of  regrets  and  remonstrances  arose  which 
would  have  made  a  weaker  man  change  his  purpose.  He 
received  the  call  from  the  Unitarian  Society  of  this  city 
early  in  the  year  of  1860,  and  sailed  from  Boston  in  the 
month  of  April.  In  a  letter  to  his  Hollis  street  Church, 
informing  them  of  the  call  to  San  Francisco,  he  gave 
two  reasons  for  his  acceptance  of  it.  One  was  his  failing 
health,  which  made  a  change  of  climate  necessary;  the 
other,  and  the  principal  one,  a  desire  to  do  the  will  of 
his  Master. 

He  identified  himself  at  once  with  California  and  its 
people,  urging  their  interests  on  all  occasions  with  a  zeal 
and  persistence  which  could  not  have  been  exceeded  had 
he  been  one  of  the  first  settlers  of  the  country.  He 
looked  beyond  the  pulpit,  and  mingled  much  with  men — 
touching  life  at  nearly  all  points.  The  agricultural  and 
mineral  resources  of  our  State  claimed  a  large  share  of 
his  attention,  and  his  lectures,  illustrated  by  quaint  humor 
as  well  as  by  deep  and  practical  knowledge  of  his  texts, 
are  fresh  as  the  sound  of  words  spoken  yesterday  in  the 
ears  of  our  people.  His  was  one  of  those  lovable  natures, 
which  warm  to  all  men,  and  in  consequence  his  circle  of 
friends  was  only  bounded  by  his  acquaintance — it  is 
questionable  if  he  ever  had  an  enemy  among  all  who 
knew  him,  even  those  who  differed  from  him  in  theologi- 
cal views  yielding  to  the  magnetic  sway  of  his  voice  and 


170  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

manner.  He  did  not  think  that  the  pulpit,  the  prow  of 
the  world,  should  be  shut  out  from  pointing  the  way  in 
politics  when  great  principles  are  involved,  and  early  in 
the  war  he  pronounced  against  the  rebellion  and  the  issues 
upon  which  it  was  conducted.  In  this  respect  he  has 
wielded  a  powerful  influence,  lending  his  aid  to  the  pre- 
servation of  harmony  in  a  State  which  at  the  outset 
seemed  likely  to  be  divided,  carrying  the  masses  with  him 
by  that  energy  and  eloquence  which  was  given  him  as  a 
birthright,  and  of  which  only  the  hand  of  Death  could 
rob  him. 

Mr.  King's  energy  has  an  eminent  illustration  in  the 
history  of  his  pastoral  labors.  He  found  the  Unitarian 
Society  some  $20,000  in  debt,  small  in  numbers  and  fee- 
ble in  strength.  In  less  than  a  year  the  whole  debt  was 
paid,  and  the  society  was  in  a  flourishing  condition  ;  be- 
fore four  years  had  expired  a  new  church  was  built  for  him^ 
costing  $90,000 — to  which  he  Iiimself  was  the  largest 
contributor,  giving  from  his  own  pocket  $7,000  to  the 
church  and  in  furniture.  Barely  had  the  building  been 
completed  when  the  pastor  was  taken  away.  This  seems 
irreconcilable  with  faith,  but  the  ways  of  Providence  are 
often  inscrutable.  His  physical  health,  never  very  robust, 
suffered  much  from  his  arduous  labors,  and  particularly 
from  the  exertions  which  he  put  forth  to  insure  the  com- 
pletion of  this  church  and  its  freedom  from  debt.  For 
two  or  three  months  before  his  death,  it  was  evident  that 
he  was  not  so  well  as  usual,  and  he  had  frequently  spoken 
of  the  necessity  of  giving  up  all  literary  labor.  He 
thought  it  would  be  impossible  for  him  to  endure  another 
year  of  work,  and  they  were  already  agitating  the  ques- 
tion of  who  should  fill  his  pulpit  while  he  took  a  year's 
respite  from  labor  in  travel. 

Just  before  his  sickness  he  had  a  dream  which  he  nar- 
rated to  a  friend  at  the  time,  remarking  that  it  made 
more  impression  on  him  than  he  cared  to  confess.  In 
his  dream  he  thought  he  was  shaving  himself,  and  the  ra- 
zor, slipping,  gashed  his  throat.  Physicians  who  were 
called  told  him  he  could  not  live  ten  minutes.  He  ar- 
gued the  case  with  them — holding  the  edges  of  the  wound 


THOMAS   STARR  KING.  I7l 

together  with  his  hand — telling  them  neither  the  windpipe 
nor  any  of  the  arteries  were  severed,  and  that  he  could 
recover  if  they  would  only  stop  the  bleeding.  They  said 
it  was  useless,  however,  and  that  he  must  prepare  to  die. 
The  dream  was  probably  induced  by  the  pain  which  had 
already  begun  to  settle  in  his  throat. 

About  two  weeks  before  his  death  he  first  complained 
of  not  feeling  well,  and  of  some  trouble  with  his  throat. 
His  friends  urged  him  to  be  more  careful,  and  not  expose 
himself  to  the  air  ;  but  he  thought  it  was  only  an  ordi- 
nary case  of  sore  throat,  and  declined  to  confine  himself 
or  call  in  the  aid  of  a  physician  until  Friday,  Feb.  26th. 
In  the  evening  he  had  his  regular  reception,  and  between 
10  and  11  o'clock  went  down  to  a  social  gathering  at  the 
church,  though  still  suffering.  On  Saturday  evening  he 
had  invited  a  number  of  friends  to  supper,  but  when  even- 
ing came  he  was  unable  to  appear  at  table.  While  sup- 
per was  going  on,  however,  a  bridal-party  came  to  be  mar- 
ried. Mr.  King  had  received  no  previous  intimation  of 
such  a  visit,  and  sent  down  asking  to  be  excused,  saying 
that  he  was  sick  and  confined  to  his  bed.  The  party  re- 
plied that  they  had  set  their  hearts  on  being  married  by 
Mr.  King,  and  would  come  up  to  his  bedside  sooner  than 
be  defeated  in  their  desire.  With  that  spirit  of  self-sac- 
rifice for  which  he  was  so  remarkable,  he  then  said  he 
would  get  up  and  go  down  into  the  parlor.  He  did  so, 
and  went  through  the  ceremony ;  but  though  it  was  per- 
formed in  a  very  few  minutes,  he  was  so  weak  at  its  con- 
clusion that  he  had  to  be  assisted  up  to  his  room. 

From  the  San  Francisco  Evening  Bulletin^  March  7th,  1864. 

Thomas  Starr  King  dead  had  a  larger  congregation 
than  he  ever  had  living.  At  9  o'clock  in  the  morning 
the  doors  of  the  church  were  opened,  and  until  noon- 
time a  congregation  numbered  by  thousands  and  com- 
prised of  all  religious  denominations,  poured  through  the 
aisles,  bending  over  the  burial-case  where  the  former 
pastor  lay  with  hands  crossed  in  dumb  prayer — listening 
to  the  mute  but  eloquent  sermon  of  the  upturned  face 


172       REPRESENTATIVE  MEN  OF  THE  PACIFIC. 

and  lips  set  in  eternal  supplication.  Loving  hands  had 
festooned  the  church  with  wreaths  of  Egyptian  lilies — 
those  flowers  which  with  their  single  petal,  waxen  white, 
suggest  the  tomb,  and  all  the  sad  thoughts  and  ceremon- 
ies that  attend  even  the  greenest  grave — National  banners, 
their  bright  stars  clouded  with  crape  and  their  crimson 
stripes  veiled,  draped  the  altar  and  threw  their  folds  over 
the  coffin  ;  the  mantle  of  patriotism  which  fell  upon  his 
shoulders  in  life,  enveloping  and  shrouding  the  form 
wdthin  in  death.  The  apron  of  the  Order  of  which  he 
was  Grand  Orator,  and  other  signs  and  symbols  of  the 
Masonic  craft,  were  there ;  flowers  of  the  rarest  odor  shed 
their  perfume  over  the  body,  and  on  the  breast  lay  a  chap- 
let  of  spring  violets,  placed  there  by  the  request  of  a  lady 
once  a  resident  of  this  city,  now  dwelling  at  the  East,*'^ 
who  telegraphed  on  Saturday  to  one  who,  like  her,  loved 
the  deceased:  ^^ Put  violets  for  me  on  our  dear  friend  who 
rests."  It  was  a  kindly  thought,  prompted  by  the  grace- 
ful tenderness  of  a  woman's  heart ;  the  flowers  will  be 
fragrant  in  the  grave  as  the  memory  of  the  deceased  is  in 
the  hearts  of  his  friends — and  these  are  only  numbered 
by  the  city's  population. 

A  military  guard  detailed  for  the  duty  was  stationed 
in  and  about  the  church,  preserving  order  among  the 
dense  crowd,  which  so  early  as  noon-time  began  to  throng 
about  the  doors.  The  butts  of  muskets  rang  on  the  mar- 
ble floors  beneath  which  one  was  to  sleep  who  believed 
that  Christians  may  wear  armor  when  the  cause  is  just, 
and  prayer  be  helmeted  and  mailed,  if  the  vindication  of 
great  human  principles  demands  it.  It  is  safe  to  say  that 
such  an  immense  assemblage  has  not  been  seen  before  in 
this  city  for  many  years.  The  congregation  first  passed 
into  the  church,  and  found  their  accustomed  pews;  the 
Governor  and  other  State  and  Governmental  dignitaries 
were  seated,  and  then  the  main  doors  were  thrown  open 
for  the  reception  of  as  many  others  as  the  church  could 
contain.  Not  a  square  inch  of  floor  was  left  in  body,  or 
aisle,  that  was  not  pressed  by  some  foot.     The  gallery 

*  Mrs.  Gen.  J.  C.  Fremont. 


THOMAS   STARR  KING.  173 

groaned  with  its  great  human  freight  like  a  ship  at  sea, 
on  whose  decks  a  mad  weight  of  water  has  leaped;  and  so 
crowded  looked  the  faces  in  that  great  bracket  of  life 
affixed  to  the  walls,  that  the  effect  was  stereoscopic  and 
all  seemed  to  resolve  themselves  into  one.  So  densely 
were  the  audience  packed  that  several  ladies  fainted 
away,  and  even  men  struggled  to  the  doors  for  air.  But 
there  was  no  exit ;  for  lobby,  vestibule,  and  even  the 
street  for  a  block  or  more  was  packed  with  human  wedges. 
So  thick  was  the  crowd  outside  that  the  street  was  only 
passed  with  difficulty  after  long  and  tedious  urging.  It 
was  like  bees,  swarming  on  the  outside  of  a  hive;  while 
through  Stockton  street,  north  and  south,  a  tide  of  peo- 
ple going  and  coming,  flowed  in  one  continuous  wave. 

The  services  began  at  2  o'clock,  with  a  voluntary  on 
the  organ,  by  Mr.  Trenkle.  A  most  impressive  scene  was 
afforded.  The  solemn  notes  swelled  through  the  church 
in  a  plaintive,  mournful  psalm ;  the  instrument  seemed 
for  the  moment  to  have  a  human  heart  within  its  walls, 
wailing  its  grief  in  sounds  that  were  like  the  falling  of 
tears.  In  the  front  pews  of  the  church  sat  the  Masons, 
each  wearing  an  acacia  sprig,  and  the  habiliments  of  the 
Order.  Through  the  stained  glass  of  the  ceiling  and  the 
sides,  and  the  great  rose-window  at  the  end  of  the  church, 
the  afternoon  sun  sifted  its  mellow  rays  like  a  benedic- 
tion, crowning  the  coffin  and  altar  with  a  glory  of  light 
and  color.  Minute  guns  from  Alcatraz  mingled  their 
heavy  bass  with  the  notes  of  the  organ — soon  a  nearer 
battery  in  Union  Square  took  up  the  burden,  and  there 
was  an  anthem  of  cannon  swelling  with  its  grand  diapason 
the  solemnity  of  the  services.  This  is  said  to  be  the 
first  time  in  the  history  of  the  country  that  minute  guns 
have  been  fired  by  order  of  the  Government  in  honor  of 
a  civilian  who  never  held  a  public  position. 

The  39th  Psalm  was  chanted  by  the  choir,  and  follow- 
ing this  the  Rev.  Mr.  Kittredge  read  the  23d  Psalm — 
the  one  which  Mr.  King  repeated  on  his  death-bed.  The 
Grand  Master  then  commenced  to  read  the  impressive 
burial  service  of  the  Masonic  ritual,  choir  and  organ 
chanting  the  responses.     The  first  prayer  of  the  ritual 


174  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

was  offered  by  Mr.  Kittredge;  and  the  remainder  of  the 
service,  slightly  varied  in  accordance  with  the  unusual 
burying-place,  was  read  by  the  Grand  Master.  At  the 
proper  interval  in  the  service  the  vault  beneath  the  altar 
was  opened,  and  amid  a  voluntary  from  the  organ,  the  cof- 
fin was  lowered  down  to  its  last  resting-place,  the  Secretary 
of  the  Lodge  dropping  his  roll  upon  it,  and  the  Grand 
Master  his  acacia  branch.  The  last  prayer  of  the  ritual 
was  off*ered  by  the  Rev.  J.  D.  Blain,  benediction  was  of- 
fered by  Mr.  Kittredge,  the  Masonic  Brotherhood  filing 
past  the  vault  flung  into  it  the  acacia  sprig  emblem 
which  each  wore  on  his  breast,  the  ceremonies  were 
ended,  and  the  great  crowd  went  out  into  the  streets  and 
to  their  homes. 

Besides  the  anthems  by  the  full  choir,  solos,  ^^  Hcncyuj 
that  my  Redeemer  Uveth,''  and  "  Gome,  ye  disconsolate ,'' 
were  sung,  the  former  by  Mrs.  Grotjan,  the  latter  by  Mrs. 
Leach.  All  through  the  city,  during  the  day,  with 
scarcely  an  exception,  at  all  the  principal  buildings,  and 
also  at  the  forts,  and  army  headquarters,  national  flags 
were  at  half-mast;  and  colors  at  the  residences  of  nearly 
all  the  foreign  Consuls  were  similarly  lowered.  Most  of 
the  American  shipping  in  harbor  lowered  its  bunting,  and 
the  foreign  shipping,  almost  to  a  vessel,  followed  the  ex- 
ample, the  flags  of  Hamburg,  Columbia,  Russia,  France 
and  Great  Britain  being  among  the  others  thus  displayed. 
On  board  the  only  war  vessel  in  port,  the  Russian  steamer 
BogatyrCj  the  Russian  ensign,  lowered  from  the  peak, 
stood  at  half-mast  during  the  day.  If  anything  can  miti- 
gate the  grief  of  his  friends  for  his  death,  some  flowers  of 
consolation  may  surely  be  plucked  from  the  fact  that  he 
was  thus  universally  mourned.  The  following  telegram 
was  received  from  the  Rev.  Dr.  Bellows : 

New  York,  March  5th,  1864. 
To  the  People  of  California, — The  sad  tidings  of  to-day 
have  broken  our  hearts.  Thousands  here  will  weep  with 
you  over  his  bier.  You  have  had  our  brightest,  our 
noblest,  our  best — and  he  has  lived  and  died,  in  the  full- 
ness of  his  manhood,  in  your  service.     Who  shall  fill  his 


THOMAS   STARR  KING.  175 

place  on  the  platform,  in  the  pulpit,  in  the  hearts  of  a 
million  of  friends  ? 

His  full,  quick,  penetrative  mind,  winged  with  fancy 
and  with  restlessness  in  the  service  of  truth,  liberty  and 
righteousness — his  soul  glowing  with  natural  sympathy. 
Christian  patriotism,  universal  philanthropy  ;  his  every 
action  made  to  utter  and  diffuse  the  noble,  inspiring  con- 
victions of  his  pure,  loving  nature ;  his  eye  the  window 
of  an  open,  honest,  fervent  soul — his  whole  character 
''made  up  of  every  creature's  best ;"  strong  and  gentle, 
generous  and  prudent,  aspiring  and  modest,  controlling 
and  deferential,  "the  people's  darling,  yet  unspoiled  by 
praise  ;"  knowing  the  world  and  its  ways,  yet  clean  of 
its  stains ;  pious  without  sanctimony — what  but  his  own 
living,  undying  confidence  in  the  absolute  goodness  of 
God  can  enable  us  to  sustain  such  a  measureless  loss  ? 
The  mountains  he  loved  and  praised  are  henceforth  his 
monuments  and  his  mourners.  The  White  Hills  and  the 
Sierra  Nevada  are,  to-day,  wrapped  in  his  shroud.  His 
dirge  will  be  perpetually  heard  in  their  forests. 

Farewell,  genial,  generous,  faithful  and  beloved  friend! 
Thou  hast  gone  from  those  who  loved  thee  well,  to  One 
who  loves  thee  best.  God  comfort  thy  family,  thy  flock, 
thy  broken-hearted  friends  on  both  sides  of  a  continent. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  congregation  of  the  First  Unita- 
rian Society  held  at  their  church  on  Geary  Street,  on  the 
evening  of  March  15th,  1864,  the  following  resolutions 
were  offered,  viz : 

It  having  pleased  the  Most  High  God  to  draw  closer 
to  His  side  His  servant,  our  greatly  beloved  and  honored 
pastor,  Thomas  Starr  King,  and  inasmuch  as  this  requisi- 
tion, coming  to  him  in  the  plenitude  of  fame,  intellect, 
and  usefulness,  found  him  still  "happy,  resigned,  trust- 
ful," it  becomes  us  as  Christian  brethren  to  restrain  the 
natural,  but  selfish  impulses  of  grief,  accepting  the  chalice 
commended  to  our  lips,  and  bowing  humbly  to  the  Om- 
nipotent will.     Therefore  be  it 


176  REPRESENTATIYE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Resolved^  That  in  the  sublime  spectacle  of  the  death- 
bed of  Thomas  Starr  King,  we  recognize  a  filll  and  tri- 
umphant vindication  of  his  faith  as  a  teacher  and  his 
works  as  a  man. 

Resolved^  That  though  it  hath  seemed  fit  to  the  Al- 
mighty to  remove  his  mortal  presence  from  among  us,  the 
subtle  influence  of  his  piety  and  genius  still  exists,  and 
continues  to  transfuse  and  possess  us;  and  that  although 
the  pulpit  of  the  church  he  has  adorned  remains  empty, 
an  emanation  of  his  goodness  still  obtains  in  the  pulpit 
of  each  man's  heart,  swaying  and  controlling  its  impulses, 
directing  and  guiding  its  promptings,  and  preaching  ''  with 
the  tongue  of  men  and  angels." 

Resolved^  That  his  ministration  of  this  Society  has 
been  vital,  creative  and  enduring ;  that  it  has  been  uni- 
formly characterized  by  ceaseless  toil  and  unabated  zeal, 
even  to  the  sacrifice  of  health  and  the  precipitation  of 
death — by  an  eloquence  earnest,  truthful  and  convincing 
— by  erudition  thorough,  complete  and  reliable — by  fervor, 
boldness  and  originality  that  have  attached  the  lukewarm 
and  indifferent — by  a  humanity  that  was  broad,  catholic, 
all- sympathizing  and  tolerant — by  a  gentleness  that  was 
winning  without  being  weak — by  a  force  that  was  decis- 
ive in  results,  though  unfelt  in  its  processes — and  by 
those  rare,  indefinable  social  graces  and  courtesies  which, 
as  they  were  not  beneath  the  Guest  of  the  bride  of  Cana, 
are  the  attributes  of  a  Christian  gentleman. 

Resolved^  That  as  citizens  of  this  republic  we  deplore, 
with  the  nation,  the  loss  of  a  courageous  heart  and  bril- 
liant intellect  ever  ready  to  battle  in  its  defense,  and  that 
we  deeply  sympathize  with  the  wounded  soldiers  in  bat- 
tle-fields and  hospitals,  who  will  miss  the  priceless  aid  of 
him  who  yearned  to  them  out  of  the  brimming  fullness 
of  his  patriotism,  charity,  and  love. 

Resolved,  That  we  tenderly  sympathize  with  the  deep 
affliction  of  that  family  circle  of  which  he  was  the  life 
and  light — offering  to  the  stricken  widow  what  consola- 
tion may  be  derived  from  the  assurance,  that  a  commu- 
nity are  partners  in  her  sorrow ;  to  his  widowed  mother 
and  kindred  in  a  distant  part  of  our  country,  the  expres- 


THOMAS    STARR   KING.  177 

sion  of  our  unfeigned  grief,  that  they  are  bereaved  of  the 
wise  counsels  and  affectionate  solicitude  of  a  noble  son 
and  brother;  and  to  the  fatherless  children,  the  undying 
record  of  his  fame  as  an  inheritance  and  example  to  them 
forever. 

Previous  to  their  passage,  Mr.  R.  B.   Swain  rose  and 
said  : 

Before  the  resolutions  are  adopted,  I  cannot  refrain 
from  bearing  my  testimony  to  the  purity  of  Mr.  King's 
life,  and  offering  to  his  memory  the  tribute  of  my  pro- 
found admiration  of  his  character,  his  genius,  and  his  tal- 
ents. I  was  early  brought  in  contact  with  him — first  by 
correspondence  before  his  arrival,  and  afterwards  as  a  co- 
laborer,  though  comparatively  a  humble  one,  in  the  cause 
of  the  church  and  of  liberal  Christianity.  Knowing  him 
so  intimately,  I  have  taken  some  pains  to  reduce  to  writ- 
ing the  thoughts  that  have  occurred  to  me  in  reference  to 
his  lit'o  and  his  early  death,  in  order  that  I  may  present 
them  in  a  regular  and  consecutive  form.  For  what  re- 
lates to  our  beloved  pastor,  should  now  be  the  property 
of  the  Society  over  which  he  presided,  and  of  which  he 
was  the  life  and  light.  His  sayings  and  doings — his  acts 
of  mercy — his  goodness  of  heart,  constantly  prompting 
him  to  deeds  of  charity — his  transcendent  genius,  which 
shone  forth  most  brilliantly  in  the  privacy  of  social  and 
familiar  relations — his  innate  purity  of  character — his 
unsellishness,  which  made  him  ambitious  to  sacrifice  his 
own  comfort  to  promote  the  comfort  of  others — his  hu- 
mility, which  rendered  him  incapable  of  knowing  his  own 
goodness  and  greatness,  and  oftentimes  led  him  to  esti- 
mate too  feebly  his  own  powers — liis  reverence,  wliicl' 
carried  his  soul  above  the  transitory  things  of  earth,  and 
gave  him  aspirations  towards  Heaven  and  his  God  ; — all 
these  constitute  an  endowment  of  priceless  memories  be- 
queathed to  the  Society  in  whose  service  he  so  faitlifully 
labored,  and  for  which  he  died.  In  the  few  remarks  I 
have  to  offer  upon  the  resolutions,  I  shall  confine  myself 
12 


178  REPRESENTATIVE   MEls    OP   THE   PACIFIC. 

chiefly  to  narrative ;  but  I  would  not,  if  I  could,  with- 
hold the  repeated  expression  of  my  love  of  him  as  a  man, 
a  patriot,  and  a  Christian — the  most  pure  in  his  thoughts, 
the  most  unseliish  in  his  character,  with  whom  it  has 
been  my  good  fortune  to  be  associated. 

I  said  I  first  knew  Mr.  King  through  correspondence. 
After  the  departure  of  our  former  pastor,  Mr.  Cutler,  and 
during  the  temporary  ministration  of  Mr.  Buckingham, 
the  Board  of  Trustees  negotiated,  through  friends  at  the 
East,  for  a  permanent  pastor.  We  were  slightly  encour- 
aged to  believe  that  Mr.  King,  then  presiding  over  the 
Hollis  Street  Society  in  Boston,  might  be  induced  to  come 
here;  and  through  a  Committee  of  the  Board,  Mr.  Brooks 
and  Mr.  Lambert,  who  were  fortunately  in  Boston  at  that 
time,  negotiations  were  opened  with  him  upon  the  sub- 
ject. I  must  confess  that  I  had  but  little  hope  that  he 
could  be  secured  for  this  Society — for  I  knew  how  he 
was  loved  and  prized  by  his  own  parishioners,  for  whom 
he  had  done  such  essential  service  during  a  period  of  ten 
years,  and  how  his  fame  and  reputation  as  a  divine  and 
lecturer  were  as  wide  as  the  continent  itself.  But  we  be- 
lieved that  he  would  have  a  great  field  here ;  and  were 
encouraged  to  hope  that  his  comparative  j^outh,  his  spirit 
of  self-sacrifice,  and  the  necessity  of  seeking  a  new  field 
of  labor  to  renew  his  i^hysical  energies,  vv^hich  had  been 
much  exhausted  by  study  and  over-exertion,  would  tempt 
him  to  listen,  at  least,  to  our  call,  and  perhaps  to  adopt 
for  a  season  this  vigorous  and  prosperous  State  as  the 
field  of  his  labors.  Fortunate,  indeed,  was  it  for  this  So- 
ciety, and  fortunate  for  California,  that  he  came.  With- 
out him,  who  can  now.  say  what  would,  to-day,  have  been 
our  condition?  Who  can  now  say  that  we  would  not 
have  been  hurled  into  the  vortex  of  secession,  or  that 
there  would  not  have  been  inaugurated  the  scheme  of  a 
Pacific  Rc»)ublic,  for  which  our  delegation  in  Congress 
were  manoeuvering,  and  which  would  have  made  this  hap- 
py, peaceful  State,  a  scene  of  fire  and  blood,  between  the 
,  contending  fury  of  loyalty  and  treason  ? 

Mr.  King's  first  communication,  in  answer  to  our  call^ 
"was  made  in  the  month  of  September,  1859,  to  the  Com- 


THOMAS   STARR  KING.  179 

mittee  then  in  Boston.  It  is  an  admirable  illustration  of 
his  frankness  and  candor,  and  although  a  private  letter, 
there  are  no  good  reasons  why  the  most  of  it  should  not 
be  read  here.  His  peculiar  sincerity  and  earnestness  are 
stamped  in  every  line.  Dr.  Bellows,  who,  I  am  proud  to 
say,  was  my  pastor  for  many  years  in  New  York,  had  been 
commissioned,  in  conjunction  with  the  Committee,  to  ob- 
tain a  pastor  for  us — but  they  had  been  enjoined  to  make 
application  to  no  man  whose  fame  was  not  already  secured, 
and  whose  name  was  not  eminent  among  the  ministers  of 
our  faith — for  it  was  certain  that  with  any  feebler  man, 
our  then  tottering  Society  would  become  bankrupt  and 
ruined,  perhaps  forever.  How  well  the  task  was  per- 
formed, let  the  present  condition  of  our  Society,  and  in- 
deed, let  the  prosperity  of  our  State,  to-day,  answer. 
Aided  by  the  powerful  influence  of  Dr.  Bellows,  negotia- 
tions were  opened  with  Mr.  King  dired.  At  that  time  his 
own  Society,  to  which  he  had  devotedly  attached  himself, 
was  claiming  a  continuation  of  his  services,  and  a  Com- 
mittee from  a  strong  Society  in  Cincinnati  were  clamor- 
ing loudly  for  him  to  remove  thither,  and  become  their 
pastor,  offering  inducements  which  no  ordinary  man — no 
sdjish  man — could  have  resisted.  As  Chairman  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees,  the  correspondence  fell  to  me.  Facts 
and  figures  as  to  our  prospects  were  sent  to  Dr.  Bellows. 
Nothing  very  flattering  as  to  the  past  could  be  present- 
ed; but  our  prospects,  with  a  strong  man,  were  set  forth 
in  brilliant  colors.  It  seemed  quite  certain  that  there 
was  a  large  field  for  the  growth  of  our  faith  in  this  State, 
under  the  leadership  of  such  a  man  as  Mr.  King  proved 
to  be,  and  our  claims  were  pushed  with  all  possible  zeal, 
and  even  with  audacity. 

The  letter  which  I  now  propose  to  read  to  you,  con- 
vinced us  that  Mr.  King,  of  all  n^en,  was  best  adapted  to 
our  wants ;  and  notwithstanding  he  was  constrained  to  an- 
swer our  call  in  the  negative,  we  refused  to  abide  by  his 
decision.     The  letter  is  as  follows : — 

My  Dear  Sir:  I  was  on  the  point  of  writing  to  you  in 
Brattleboro,  when  your  letter  of  this  morning  came. 


180  EEPKtSENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

It  has  been  impossible  for  me  to  reply  at  an  earlier 
date.  I  have  been  very  busy  consulting  intimate  friends, 
obtaining  information,  and  forecasting  the  trouble,  difficul- 
ty, and  losses  of  uprooting  myself  and  family  here,  while 
not  a  little  time  has  been  absorbed  in  studying  my  own 
inclinations,  heart,  and  resources,  for  such  duties  as  the 
post  in  San  Francisco  would  demand. 

The  result  of  all  my  inquiries,  consultations  and  re- 
flections, stands  thus:  1st.  Very  grave  doubts  as  to  the 
ability  of  the  parish  to  pay  the  salary  named  to  me.  Gen- 
tlemen who  know  the  Unitarian  Society  there  pretty  well, 
have  assured  friends  of  mine  that  the  parish  is  not  unit- 
ed— that  there  are  a  great  many  great  draw-backs  to  the 
popularity  of  a  liberal  faith  in  the  city,  and  that  with  a 
debt  of  $12,400  on  which  the  Society  pay  12  per  cent, 
interest,  and  a  floating  debt  of  $1000,  no  man  with  tal- 
ents less  electrical  than  Chapin's,  Beecher's,  or  Dr.  Bel- 
lows', could  put  the  parish  in  a  condition  to  pay  such  a 
salary.  And  I  am  assured  that  I  could  not  live  in  San 
Francisco — being  myself  a  very  poor  economist — for  less 
than  $5000,  at  least,  with  my  family. 

I  fmd  that  I  must  sacrifice  nearly  $2000  on  house  and 
furniture  and  books,  if  I  uproot  here.  Then  there  is  the 
expense  of  removal  with  my  wife  and  daughter;  then  the 
cost  of  setting  up  anew  out  there,  the  return  expenses, 
and  the  new  housekeeping  costs,  two  or  three  years  hence, 
if  I  come  back. 

The  risks  are  very  great.  I  am  a  poor  man ;  I  have 
worked  very  hard  for  ten  years,  have  had  heavy  extra 
expenses,  which  still  continue,  and  can  not  afford  to 
give  up  such  certainties  as  are  before  me  here,  for  the 
ventures  of  so  distant  a  field  of  labor.  Every  year  my 
lecture  opportunities  enlarge.  I  should  abandon  that 
field  in  going  to  San  Francisco,  and  might  not  be  able  to 
reenter  it  so  favorably. 

Then  beyond  all  this,  I  have  misgivings  as  to  my  qual- 
ification for  such  work  as  your  Society  needs,  to  fill  the 
Church  with  numbers  and  enthusiasm.  I  am  not  extem- 
pore enough — electric  enough — so  I  fear.  You  need  a 
temperament  like  Dr.  Bellows',  or  a  stirring  preacher  like 


THOMAS   STARR  KING.  181 

Chapin,  to  enable  the  parish  to  fulfill  such  promises  as 
Mr.  Swain's  note  to  me  contained.  From  all  that  I  have 
heard  and  thought,  therefore,  I  dare  not  trust  to  my  power 
of  infusing  ability  enough  in  the  parish  to  produce  the 
requisite  receipts.     I  have  too  much  at  stake. 

Yet  I  feel  very  strongly  the  attractions  of  the  field. 
If  I  could  properly  go  to  San  Francisco  on  a  smaller  sal- 
ary, I  would  gladly  do  so,  and  work  to  the  best  of  my 
pov/er  for  the  good  of  your  parish  and  our  noble  cause. 
Or  if  I  could  have  gone  out  to  California  on  the  invitation 
of  the  Mercantile  Library  Association,  last  spring,  inde- 
pendently of  the  parish,  and  preached  in  the  city  and 
surveyed  the  field  for  lecturing,  I  could  possibly  have 
found  firm  ground  for  an  affirmative  reply  to  your  call. 

But  as  the  whole  subject  has  shaped  itself,  since  my 
inquiries  and  serious  thought,  and  with  the  firm  convic- 
tion tliat  many  of  the  inducements  must  prove  illusory, 
nothing  seems  to  be  left  to  me,  at  present,  but  to  decline 
the  call.  Several  of  my  own  parishioners  were  disposed, 
at  first,  to  the  movement;  and  would  be  still  if  they  were 
convinced  that  the  basis  is  firm.  But  they  cannot  advise 
me,  otherwise  than  against  it,  as  matters  look  to  them 
now.  I  have  told  you  frankly  my  whole  mind,  and  I  can 
only  offer  you,  with  sincere  thanks  for  your  kindness  and 
complimentary  call,  my  cordial  cooperation  in  obtaining 
a  man  who  can  prudently  go  on  a  smaller  salary  than 
would  be  necessary  for  me. 

With  cordial  regards,  believe  me, 

Faithfully  3^our&, 

T.  S.  KING. 

This  letter  contained  one  single  paragraph  upon  which 
we  felt  that  we  could  hang  a  hope  of  success;  and  accord- 
ingly, by  return  of  mail,  the  Trustees  dispatched  to  Dr. 
Bellows  such  documents  as  removed  from  Mr.  King's 
mind  all  doubts  as  to  his  true  duty.  He  accepted  promptly 
— as  promptly  as  he  did  everything  when  convinced  of  the 
path  in  which  he  should  tread.  By  an  early  mail,  a  letter 
was  received  from  Mr.  Lambert,  one  of  our  Committee, 
enclosing  a  note  to  him  from  Mr.  King,  as  follows:  — 


182  REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Boston,  January  2d,  1860. 

My  Dear  Friend  :  I  hasten  to  say  that  I  have  written 
my  resignation  to  the  Hollis  Street  Parish,  which  will  be 
offered  this  evening.  To-morrow,  I  shall  write  to  the 
Committee  in  San  Francisco,  so  that  the  letter  shall  go 
by  the  mail  of  the  6th.  Probably  I  shall  stay  there,  if 
I  live,  two  years.  I  have  no  time  for  further  particulars 
this  morning. 

I  hope  1  have  made  no  mistake  in  deciding  to  go  so 
far  without  going  permanently.  But  trusting  and  pray- 
ing that  I  may  be  of  service  to  the  noble  brethren  and 
the  good  cause  in  San  Francisco,  and  pledging  to  you  all 
my  power  to  that  end,  during  my  stay  there,  I  am,  with 
cordial  thanks  for  all  your  kindness,  sincerely  yours, 

T.  S.  KING. 

The  following  steamer  brought  Mr.  King's  letter  of 
acceptance — so  noble,  so  frank,  that  it  should  ever  be 
preserved  in  the  archives  of  this  Society  as  a  memento  of 
his  goodness,  and  an  enduring  monument  of  his  liberal, 
self-sacrificing  spirit. 

Boston,  January  3d,  1860. 
R.  B.  Swain,  Chairman  of  Trustees 

of  Unitarian  Parish  San  Francisco: 

My  Dear  Sir:  As  I  am  now  addressing  you  for  the 
first  time,  in  my  reply  to  many  kind  and  important  com- 
munications, it  is  proper  that  I  should  explain  to  you  my 
long  silence.  When  your  letters  and  documents  of  Nov. 
3d  reached  me,  I  had  just  received  a  very  urgent  call  to 
remove  to  Cincinnati,  to  take  charge  of  a  Society  recently 
organized  there.  I  had  not  anticipated  such  a  response 
to  my  letter  to  Mr.  Brooks,  as  your  parish  so  generously 
returned.  I  supposed  that  the  correspondence  had  ceas- 
ed. Mr.  Lambert  was  in  quest  of  another  minister  for 
you,  and  as  the  movement  in  Cincinnati  was  backed  by 
strong  letters  from  prominent  Unitarian  clergymen,  I 
found  myself  not  a  little  embarrassed  when  your  new  call 
came,  by  the  confiicting  claims  of  your  city,  Cincinnati, 
and  l^oston.  To  add  to  my  perplexity,  I  had  engaged  to 
lecture  two  weeks  in  December  in  the  heart  of  New  York 
State,  which  time  was  practically  lost  to  me. 


THOMAS    STARR   KING.  183 

On  Saturday  last,  December  31st.  I  made  my  decision 
to  go  to  San  Francisco,  and  on  Sunday  communicated  it 
to  my  Society  here.  Yesterday  I  wrote  a  letter  of  resig- 
nation, which  v/as  read  to  a  very  full  meeting  of  parish- 
ioners last  evening.  A  large  Committee  was  chosen  to 
confer  with  me,  and  to  ask  me  so  to  change  the  form  of  my 
withdrawal,  as  to  accept  leave  of  absence  for  fifteen 
months  from  the  first  of  April,  leaving  it  for  the  future 
to  determine  whether  or  not  my  connection  with  the  So- 
ciety should  be  finally  dissolved. 

The  reasons  for  requesting  this  were:  that  the  parish 
would  be  seriously  shaken  by  an  absolute  withdrawal  so 
suddenly;  that  I  could  not  be  sure  of  liking  a  residence 
in  California  more  than  a  year;  that  my  family  might  be 
anxious  to  return ;  that  you  might  be  dissatisfied  with  my 
service  and  prefer  not  to  continue  the  arrangement;  that 
if  I  should  return  so  soon  they  would  like  to  have  the 
first  claim  to  a  resettlement ;  and  that,  if  I  should  be 
wanted  in  San  Francisco,  and  decide  to  remain  longer 
with  you,  the  devoted  friends  I  leave  in  the  Ilo^lis  Street 
Society  could  bear  the  separation  better,  if  it  should  be 
gradually  made. 

The  tone  of  the  large  meeting  w^as  so  kindly; — not  a 
voice  or  vote  dissenting — and  the  reasons  for  my-  leaving 
at  all  for  California  were  so  generously  appreciated,  that 
although  the  action  of  the  parishioners  was  an  entire 
surprise  to  me,  I  could  not  refuse  assent  to  their  request. 

But  I  beg  you  to  understand  that  I  am  not  pledged  or 
bound  in  the  least,  by  the  form  in  w^hich  the  separation 
from  Boston  is  made.  I  shall  go  to  you  with  as  much 
freedom  as  if  I  had  never  been  settled  in  the  East.  Your 
generous  guarantee  offers  me  a  salary  for  one,  two,  or  three 
years,  at  my  option.  I  accept  the  call  for  a  3'ear,  to  be 
your  pastor  during  that  period.  If,  before  its  cloce,  I  see 
clearly  that  I  ought  to  remain  longer,  a  letter  to  Bor^on, 
staling  the  fact,  will  release  me  from  any  obligation. 
And  if,  during  that  time,  the  Society  here  desire  to  en- 
gage another  mmister,  nothing  but  a  letter  to  me  is  need- 
ed to  give  them  the  moral  right  to  do  so. 

I  have  been  thus  explicit  that  you  may  know  in  exact 


184  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

terms,  and  in  detail,  the  state  of  the  case.  I  ought  to  say, 
also,  that  Mr.  Lambert  wrote  to  me  from  New  York,  on 
December  28th,  that  it  would  be  advisable  for  me  to  go, 
even  if  I  should  know  beforehand  that  I  could  remain 
only  a  year. 

But  now,  my  dear  sir,  let  me  speak  through  you  to  the 
Trustees  and  the  Society,  unhampered  by  any  details  of 
business.  I  thank  you  most  cordially  for  your  strong 
and  generous  invitation.  From  the  first  moment  when  I 
received  the  call,  last  September,  I  was  attracted  to  ac- 
cept it  for  a  time,  that  I  might  try  and  be  of  service  in 
your  fresh  and  promising  field.  My  only  regret  is  that 
any  pecuniary  questions  have  intruded  to  disturb  the 
nobler  considerations  which  should  govern  a  clergyman's 
choice.  It  was  my  necessities  that  dictated  the  particu- 
lars in  the  letter  to  Mr.  Brooks,  and  I  did  not  deem  that 
the  letter  would  be  sent  to  your  city.  I  shall  go  to  you 
in  the  hope  of  using  all  the  powers  that  may  be  continu- 
ed to  me,  for  your  permanent  strength  as  a  liberal  Chris- 
tian parish.  My  great  ambition  in  life  is,  to  serve  the 
cause  of  Christianity  as  represented  by  the  noblest  souls 
of  all  the  liberal  Christian  parties.  I  am  not  conscious 
of  any  gifts,  either  of  thought  or  speech,  that  can  make 
my  presence  with  you  so  desirable  as  you  seem  to  think  ; 
but,  if  I  can  be  of  service  by  cooperating  with  you,  in 
laying  deeper  the  foundations  and  lifting  higher  the  walls 
of  our  faith  in  your  city,  whose  civilization  is  weaving 
out  of  the  most  various,  and  in  many  respects,  the  best 
threads  of  the  American  character,  I  shall  have  reason 
always  to  bless  Providence  for  a  rich  privilege. 

It  is  doubtful  if  I  can  leave  here  with  my  family  be- 
fore the  6th  of  April,  but  of  this  I  shall  know  in  a  v/eek 
or  two;  as  soon  as  I  can  possibly  go  to  you,  ycA\  may  be 
sure  of  my  presence,  and  before  we  meet  on  the  Pacific 
coast,  let  me  ask  you  to  accept  a  cordial  general  greeting, 
as  brethren  and  friends,  invoking  for  all  of  you  health, 
prosperity,  and  every  inward  blessing  of  the  perfect  Pro- 
vidence. 

In  Christian  bonds,  your  servant  and  friend, 

TH.  STARR  KING. 


THOMAS   STARR  KING.  185 

Accompanying  this  letter  was  a  private  note  to  my- 
self, a  portion  of  which  belongs  to  the  history  of  the 
times. 

Boston,  January  odj  1860. 

My  Dear  AIr.  Swain  :  I  sent  yesterday  my  official 
answer  to  the  generous  call  of  your  Society,  with  the 
reasons  for  its  delay. 

You  will  see  that  I  shall  hardly  be  able  to  leave  be- 
fore the  5th  April.  I  have  many  lecture  engagements  to 
fulfill  between  this  and  March.  I  cannot  relinquish  them, 
for  I  shall  need  the  money  they  will  furnish  to  pay  the 
expenses  of  removal  and  clear  a  few  debts  here.  I  am 
sorry  that  I  am  not  in  a  condition  to  start  at  once. 

May  I  ask  you  to  inform  me  if  there  is  a  room  that 
could  be  used  as  a  minister's  writing-room  in  your 
church  building. 

I  have  not  time  to  reply  by  this  mail  to  the  in-^atation 
of  the  Mercantile  Library  Association,  but  will  do  so  in  a 
few  days.  Of  course  I  shall  be  glad  to  lecture  for  them 
at  the  time  best  suited  to  their  convenience,  and  as  to 
terms,  will  not  fear  that  we  shall  disagree. 

Cordially,  yours,  T.  S.  KING. 

This  letter  electrified  the  Society  and  gladdened  the 
hearts  of  the  community  ;  for  the  fame  of  Mr.  King,  as  a 
scholar  and  a  divine,  had  long  before  reached  this  side  of 
the  continent,  and  the  public  rejoiced  that  a  great  addi- 
tion was  to  be  made  to  our  stock  of  talent  and  energy. 
The  future  of  our  Society  was  no  longer  a  question  of 
doubt,  and  weeks  before  the  arrival  of  Mr.  King,  every 
pew  in  our  church  was  taken,  and  we  were  at  once  placed 
upon  a  permanent  and  prosperous  footing. 

He  left  Boston  on  the  5th  of  April,  1860,  but  before 
his  arrival  several  letters  were  received  from  him,  from 
two  of  which  I  will  make  extracts. 

Boston,  March  4th,  1860. 
My  Dear  Friend:  Let  me  thank  you  cordially,  though 
it  must  be  hurriedly,  for  your  kind  and  most  interesting 
communications  of  the  last  mail.       It  gives  me  joy  to 


186  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

learn  that  the  tidings  of  the  acceptance  were  so  gener- 
ously echoed.  You  seem  to  be  anxious  that  I  shall  not 
doubt  of  the  readiness  of  the  Society  to  second  all  my 
labors  and  confirm  my  hopes. 

Be  assured,  my  friend,  that  I  have  no  fringe  or  thread 
of  skepticism  on  any  such  point.  My  only  fear  is  lest 
you  should  be  disappointed  when  I  arrive,  and  find  that 
your  anticipations  outrun  any  possible  performance 
from  me. 

Would  that  I  could  have  made  arrangements  to  leave 
to-morrow.  I  had  engaged  my  rooms  in  the  Baltic  for 
April  5th,  and  now  she  and  the  Atlantic  are  withdrawn. 
We  must  go  in  the  Yanderbilt  line,  with  prices  raised  to 
$200  a  ticket.  This  is  reasonable  enough — but  I  should 
like  to  have  had  the  advantage  of  the  low  fares,  and  es- 
pecially of  the  better  boats. 

We  cannot  learn  yet,  either,  whether  or  not  April  5th 
will  be  one  of  the  leaving  days,  under  the  new  arrange- 
ment. Probably  it  will,  but  no  advertisements  are  made, 
and  no  tickets  sold  so  far  ahead.  We  hope  that  the 
Northern  Light  will  sail  on  that  day.  If  I  could  have 
foreknown  the  present  combination,  you  would  see  we, 
instead  of  this  note,  by  the  boat  that  takes  this. 

Dr.  Bellows  very  kindly  sent  me  your  letter  to  him. 
I  read  its  passages  with  practical  interest.  I  expect  to 
like  California,  and  all  of  you,  much  better  than  you  will 
return  the  feeling. 

I  am  troubled  in  spirit  a  little  as  to  our  friend  Buck- 
ingham. I  hope  that  he  can  find  preacliing  occupation  that 
will  be  advantageous  in  the  State,  and  shall  be  glad  to  as- 
sist him  in  any  enterprise  that  will  open  such  opportunity. 

You  can  hardly  appreciate  the  pressure  on  my  time 
and  thoaghts  of  the  last  few  weeks.  A  pile  of  letters 
now  lies  unanswered,  for  which  I  can  get  no  leisure. 
This  will  account  for  my  delay  in  rcpl\ang  formally  to 
the  Mercantile  Library  invitation.  They  can  choose 
their  own  time  for  four  lectures.  Of  course,  T  cannot 
hear  from  you  in  reply  to  this  note.  The  next  mail  will 
probably  gladden  mo  v/ith  a  commimication  from  you. 
I  am,  gratefully,  your  friend,  T.  S.  Kili G» 


THOMAS    STAER   KING.  187 

Boston,  March  19th,  1850. 

My  Dear  Friend:  I  send  a  word  by  this  steamer,  al- 
though there  is  nothing  of  special  moment  that  calls  for 
a  letter. 

It  has  not  been  in  my  power  to  arrange  for  leaving 
earlier  than  April  5th.  The  Northern  Light  is  announced 
for  that  date. 

Next  Sunday  I  am  to  preach  my  farewell  sermon  in 
Boston.  The  parish  behave  more  nobly  to  me  than  I 
could  have  dreamed  it  possible.  Their  conduct,  so  large- 
minded  and  considerate,  smooths  my  removal,  while  it 
attaches  me  still  stronger  to  such  friends  by  the  heart- 
fibres. 

Drs.  Bellows  and  Osgood  have  arranged  for  a  public 
Unitarian  breakfast-party  for  me  in  New  York,  the  day 
before  we  sail.  This  is  in  honor  of  the  faithful  breth- 
ren in  San  Francisco,  so  I  hope  you  will  feel  proud  on 
April  4th. 

In  the  hope  of  finding  you  well  when  I  reach  you, 
and  not  quite  sick  of  your  bargain,  I  am,  cordially,  yours, 

T.  S.  KING. 

What  followed  upon  his  arrival  is  familiar  to  every 
person  present.  The  Society  gi^ew  in  numbers,  strength 
and  enthusiasm.  Mr.  King  at  once  ingratiated  himself  in 
the  affections  of  the  people.  Answering  a  call  from  the 
Mercantile  Library  Association  for  a  course  of  four  lec- 
tures, he  drew  around  him  crowds,  the  like  of  which  had 
never  before  been  known  in  this  city.  Notwithstanding 
he  was  paid  liberally  by  the  Association,  the  lectures 
added  largely  to  the  treasury  of  that  Institution,  and  he 
was  invited  to  deliver  a  second  course,  which  he  was  com- 
pelled to  decline,  from  a  sense  of  duty  to  this  Society. 
What  has  been  the  history  of  our  Church  since  then,  is  a 
matter  of  record.  During  the  first  year  of  his  ministra- 
tion, a  debt  of  $20,000,  which  had  been  a  halter  about 
our  necks,  and  which  had  threatened  to  strangle  us,  was 
extinguished.  Not  satisfied  with  this  success,  which 
surpassed  the  most  sanguine  expectations  of  the  Society, 
he  pursued  his  labors  unremittingly.     Ilis  active,  ardent 


ibo  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

spirit  kii(jw  no  bounds,  and  he  continued  his  efforts  with- 
out any  thoughts  of  self,  but  with  an  eye  single  to  the 
best  interests  of  those  in  whose  cause  he  devoted  the  most 
of  his  time  and  talents.  It  soon  became  apparent  that  his 
field  was  too  small,  and  that  a  larger  church,  more  cen- 
trally located,  was  essentially  necessary.  To  the  erection 
of  such  a  church,  which  should  at  once  be  an  ornament 
to  the  city,  an  honor  to  the  Society,  and  a  true  represen- 
tative of  our  strength,  he  devoted  all  his  energies.  He 
started  the  call  by  a  liberal  subscription  himself;  he  lent 
to  the  cause  all  the  momentum  of  his  sanguine,  ardent 
nature ;  he  enlisted  others  in  its  support  by  his  example 
and  his  persuasive  and  convincing  appeals.  How  well 
he  succeeded  for  ^^s•,  let  this  magnificent  edifice,  so  beau- 
tiful, so  tasteful,  so  grand,  attest.  What  was  the  result 
to  Jmnselfj  let  that  grave  answer.  For  I  solemnly  believe, 
that  to  his  devoted  care  and  anxiety  and  toil  in  the  erec- 
tion of  this  building,  may  be  attributed  much  of  that 
physical  debility  which  undermined  his  constitution  and 
shortened  his  days.  He  gave  us  the  church  with  his  life. 
He  gave  us  a  temple,  elegant  in  its  proportions,  ample  in 
its  accommodations,  and  pleasing  to  the  taste  and  refine- 
ment of  the  people.  But  the  organ  he  so  liberally 
donated  to  the  Society  w^as  used  to  sound  his  requiem,  the 
pulpit  he  adorned  is  his  mausoleum,  and  the  Church  is 
his  own  enduring  monument,  consecrated  forever  to  the 
memory  of  his  goodness,  his  affection  to  his  Society,  and 
his  undying  name. 

Mr.  King,  as  if  possessed  of  the  gift  of  prescience,  had 
long  entertained  the  belief  that  he  would  never  reach  the 
age  of  forty.  He  said  but  little  upon  the  subject — but  a 
short  time  after  his  arrival  here,  he  addressed  an  interest- 
ing communication  to  me  upon  the  affairs  of  the  Church, 
in  which  this  idea  was  constantly  interwoven.  It  ap- 
peared as  if  it  were  his  desire  to  place  his  impressions 
upon  record — and  so  strong  were  these  feelings,  that  he 
was  the  more  anxious  to  put  the  affairs  of  the  Church 
upon  a  safe  foundation  immediately,  and  complete  the 
work  which  he  had  begun.  Some  who  did  not  know  him, 
attributed  this  anxiety  to  a  determination  on  his  part  to 


THOMAS   STARR   KING.  189 

leave  the  State  at  an  early  da}^  I  am  sure  he  had  no  in- 
tention of  leaving  us  permanently.  A  few  months  ago, 
he  unfolded  to  me  all  his  plans,  and  he  then  statii^d  that 
he  was  desirous  of  visiting  Europe,  and  particularly  Ger- 
many, for  purposes  of  education  ;  that  if  he  could  leave 
here  for  a  period  of  two  years,  for  travel  abroad,  and  im- 
prove his  mind  and  health,  he  would  be  glad  to  return 
and  remain.  If  the  Liberal  Christians  thought  best  to 
build  him  another  and  smaller  Church,  he  would  be  quite 
content  to  preach.  If  not,  and  they  were  satisfied  with 
the  minister  who  should  be  installed  during  his  absence, 
he  would  devote  himself  to  literary  pursuits,  to  preaching 
occasionally,  and  to  advancing  our  cause  and  the  cause  of 
public  charities  throughout  the  State.  But  I  must  read 
the  letter  to  which  I  have  alluded. 

San  Francisco,  August  16th,  1800. 

My  Dear  Mr.  Swain  :  I  have  thought  very  seriously 
since  Tuesday  evening,  of  the  objects  and  results  of  the 
meeting  of  the  Trustees  at  my  house,  and  I  venture  to 
trouble  you  with  some  lines,  which  had  better  be  written 
than  spoken. 

I  regret  to  learn  that  the  debt  remaining  against  the 
parish  is  so  large  as  $8,000,  and  I  cannot  help  feeling  some 
serious  concern  in  relation  to  it.  My  special  object  in 
sending  you  this  note  is  to  learn  if  any  way  can  be  opened 
by  me  that  will  lead  to  the  liquidation  of  it,  or  a  large  por- 
tion of  it,  this  fall. 

What  moves  me  more  powerfully,  is  the  apprehension 
I  have  begun  to  feel  as  to  my  health. 

Six  or  eight  months  before  leaving  Boston,  I  beran  to 
be  conscious  that  my  health  was  insecure.  I  could  not 
bear  the  thought  of  a  long  season  of  invalid-ism,  rnd  a 
long  experience  of  lying-upon-the-shelf-itiveness  ;  and  so 
I  was  more  strongly  impelled,  to  California,  by  the  hope 
and  belief  that  I  could  help  the  brethren  and  the  cause 
here  by  labor  that  would  not  exhaust  my  lessened  strength, 
while  the  climate  would  repair  the  damage,  and  possibly 
fill  the  fountain  with  an  unusual  store  of  vitality. 

It  is  useless  for  me  to  shut  my  eyes  to  the  fact  that  I 


190  REPEESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

am  not  so  well  as  I  was  when  in  Boston.  I  experience 
strange  debility,  and  singular  pains  and  numbness  in  the 
brain.  For  writing  purposes  I  am  nearly  worthless- — and 
the  symptoms  are  the  more  serious  from  the  fact,  that  my 
father's  constitution  (which  in  most  respects  I  seem  to 
have  inherited)  snapped  at  about  thirty-six.  He  was 
a  very  strong  man  till  then,  but  broke  thus  earl}^,  was 
good  for  nothing  for  three  or  four  years,  and  died  at 
forty- one. 

ISTow,  I  desire  to  be  of  essential  service  to  the  parish 
here,  by  my  visit.  I  cannot  be  unless  your  debt  is  wiped 
out.  If  I  shall  not  grow  stronger  this  fall  aud  winter,  I 
must  return  East  next  spring,  to  stop  all  ministerial  work 
— ^perhaps,  to  cease  all  work  on  this  planet — and  it  would 
be  a  very  bad  thing  to  leave  you  then,  with  four  or  five 
thousand  dollars  of  debt  to  be  paid. 

Can  I  not,  think  you,  start  some  plan  for  paying  off  so 
large  a  portion  of  it  this  fall,  that  there  will  certainly  he 
none  remaining  next  spring?  Then  you  would  be  on  the  safe 
side ;  and  if  my  health  should  improve,  and  I  can  stay 
with  you  longer,  another  period  of  service  would  bear  the 
more  fruit.  Would  any  proposition  from  me,  in  a  sermon, 
towards  such  a  result,  be  out  of  place?  Of  course,  I 
should  breathe  no  word  of  my  real  motive,  as  to  my  state 
of  health.  I  do  not  wish  you  to  mention  it.  I  have  not 
even  told  my  wife  these  fears,  and  she  does  not  know 
that  I  write  this  letter.  Yet  I  am  so  impressed  with  the 
suspicion  that  my  constitution  is  impaired,  that  I  feel  it 
my  duty  to  consult  with  some  one  as  to  this  matter  of  the 
debt,  and  the  future  of  the  parish — and  with  whom  so 
properly  as  with  you  ? 

Do  not  allow  yourself  to  be  worried,  or  even  seriously 
alarmed,  by  what  I  say.  Look  at  my  fears,  as  I  do  for 
the  present,  in  a  business  light,  and  tell  me  what  can  be 
done,  and  how  best  done  to  put  the  parish  out  of  danger. 
I  am  perfectly  willing  to  take  the  matter  out  of  the  Trus- 
tees' hands,  if  you  say  so,  and  try  my  luck  from  the 
pulpit  in  reducing  the  debt. 

In  everything  I  say  about  my  strength,  I  am  under- 
stating rather  than  overstating.      Some  days  I  do  not 


THOMAS   STARR   KING,  191 

seem  to  have  a  thimble-full  of  vitality  ;  but  with  what  I 
have,  I  am  wholly  your  friend,  T.  S.  KING. 

P.  S.— Do  not  reply  to  this  by  peny  we  can  talk  as 
well. 

I  seized  an  early  opportunity  to  have  an  interview 
upon  the  subject  of  the  letter.  His  thoughts  were  alto- 
gether with  reference  to  the  prosperity  of  the  Society,  and 
the  danger  of  his  breaking  down,  and  leaving  us  to  carry 
the  heavy  burden  of  a  debt.  I  endeavored  to  dispel  his 
fears  in  regard  to  his  health,  and  inquired  why  such  a 
presentiment  had  possessed  him.  He  said  it  was  no  pre- 
sentiment^ but  an  inwrought  conviction;  that  the  conviction 
was  well  based  on  physiological  grounds  ;  that  he  enter- 
tained no  fears  of  death  ;  that  but  for  his  anxiety  in 
regard  to  his  family,  he  could  hail  the  approach  of  death 
with  pleasure  ;  that  his  life  had  been  one  of  great  toil 
from  his  earliest  boyhood  ;  that  he  had  looked  forward 
to  each  approaching  year  as  a  season  when  rest  would  be 
vouchsafed  to  him,  but  it  never  came.  Every  year 
brought  new  cares,  new  responsibilities,  new  labors,  and 
he  had  come  to  the  conclusion  that  there  was  to  be  no 
rest  for  him  on  this  globe.  He  again  said,  that  but  for 
his  anxiety  for  his  family,  he  would,  therefore,  be  glad  to 
enjoy  the  perpetual  rest  which  could  only  be  found  be- 
yond the  grave. 

Mr.  King's  labors  were  immense.  He  never  lost  a 
moment.  He  knew  how  to  economize  time.  But  his 
time  was  much  broken  by  constant  demands  upon  his 
chr.rity  and  kindness.  Every  claimant  found  a  respectful 
audience,  however  pressing  his  duties,  and  no  deserving 
one  was  turned  awa}^  unsatisfied.  His  charities  were  en- 
tirely unostentatious,  and  oftentimes  stealthily  bestowed ; 
so  stealthily  that  not  even  the  members  of  his  own  house- 
hold, nor  his  best  friends  were  informed  of  them.  I  am 
sure  that  he  took  a  secret  delight  in  unheralded  acts  of 
kindness,  and  that  he  found  sufficient  commendation  in 
the  silent  approval  of  his  own  heart.  One  of  our  own 
parishioners  has  informed  me,  since  his  death,  that  he 


'nifiVBE:iT7, 


192  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF  THE   PACIFIC. 

has  been  paid  hundreds  of  dollars  by  Mr.  King  for  wood 
that  he  has  ordered  for  suffering  families — and  another 
has  also  stated  to  me  that  he  had  sent  large  quantities  of 
the  necessaries  of  life,  such  as  flour,  sugar,  etc.,  to  dif- 
ferent sections  of  the  cit}^,  by  direction  of  Mr.  King,  for 
the  poor  and  needy.  These  quiet  deeds  of  charity  had  a 
peculiar  charm  to  him.  But  he  was  discreet  in  the  be- 
stowal of  his  favors.  I  know  that  Mr.  King  took  much 
time  to  inquire  into  the  merits  of  each  case,  and  that  he 
was  seldom  deceived.  He  took  a  hroad  view  of  suffering. 
When  cases  were  presented  to  him,  the  sufferer  lu^ged  of 
course  only  the  selfish  side.  Mr.  King  saw  all  around  and 
through  it,  and  took  an  intellectual  as  well  as  a  Christian 
view.  The  sufferer  might  seek  to  obtain  relief  from  im- 
mediate wants — Mr.  King  thought  of  his  degradation,  of 
his  wounded  pride,  the  poverty-stricken  spirit,  and  what 
might  be  his  usefulness  to  society  if  raised  from  the 
''  Slough  of  Despond  "  to  a  position  of  prosperity.  And 
so  he  gauged  the  extent  of  his  charities,  for  he  seldom 
stopped  to  reflect  upon  the  amplitude  of  his  own  purse. 

By  reason  of  these  constant  drafts  upon  Mr.  King's 
attention,  the  execution  of  some  of  his  most  important 
labors  was  impeded  and  sadly  interrupted.  While  the 
rest  of  the  world  was  enjoying  the  repose  of  sleep,  he  was 
laboring.  He  was  compelled  to  use  the  midnight  hours 
for  much  of  his  literary  work,  and  I  have  frequently 
known  him  to  flnish  his  morning  sermon  fifteen  minutes 
before  the  church  services  commenced.  His  most  elo- 
quent perorations  have  been  written,  watch  in  hand,  but 
a  few  minutes  previous  to  the  delivery  of  the  exordiums. 

In  spite  of  these  perpetual  claims  upon  his  time  he 
w^as,  nevertheless,  a  thorough  student ;  not  a  library  in 
San  Francisco,  of  any  note,  either  public  or  private,  th  at 
he  had  not  consulted.  His  perceptions  were  so  active, 
his  intuitions  so  keen,  and  his  memory  so  retentive,  that 
he  understood,  appreciated  and  learned  instantly.  He 
never  ceased  to  study.  Circumstances  prevented  him 
from  completing  his  college  course,  but  he  none  the  less 
qualified  himself  for  his  degrees,  which  were  bestowed 
upon  him,  without  solicitation,  by  Harvard  University. 


THOMAS  STAER   KING,  193 

One.  of  the  newspaper  writers  says  that  "  Mr.  King's 
scholarship  was  not  deep,  nor  extensive,  not  even  in 
theology."  And  another  says:  "  Not  favored  with  college 
or  university  advantages,  he  was  thoroughly  and  carefully 
read  in  the  literature  of  his  own  language."  These 
writers  evidently  did  not  know  whereof  they  affirmed. 
They  have  imbibed  the  error  common  to  college  gradu- 
ates, of  supposing  that  a  man  without  an  Alma  Mater 
cannot  be  a  scholar.  Mr.  King  was  so  much  the  more 
deep  and  profovMd  in  his  scholarship.  He  had  no  college 
education  to  fall  back  upon,  but  he  continued  his  re- 
searches until  he  died.  He  was  thoroughly  conversant 
with  the  Greek,  Latin  and  Hebrew  languages,  and  under- 
stood well  the  French  and  German.  But  he  hated 
pedantry.  He  never  obtruded  his  knowledge  upon  the 
observation  of  others,  and  in  conversation  or  public 
speech,  seldom,  if  ever,  quoted  from  the  classics. 

No  one  who  remembers  his  famous  controversy,  a  few 
years  since,  with  a  distinguished  divine  and  an  apostate 
from  the  Unitarian  faith,  in  Boston,  can  doubt  his  schol- 
arship. No  one  who  knew  him  intimately  will  deny  that 
he  had  mastered  several  of  the  modern  languages.  In 
the  case  of  the  controversy  to  wdiich  I  have  alluded,  a 
question  arose  as  to  the  correct  translation  in  the  English 
Bible  of  certain  passages  from  the  Greek  and  Hebrew. 
His  antagonist,  than  whom,  it  was  supposed,  no  riper 
scholar  lived  in  Boston,  under-estimated  entirely  the 
powers  of  his  opponent.  So  completely  did  Mr.  King 
annihilate  him,  that  he  sought  the  editor  of  the  paper  in 
which  the  argunaent  was  conducted,  on  Sunday ;  confessed 
his  error,  and  implored  him,  with  tears  in  his  eyes,  to 
spare  him. 

His  acquaintance  w^ith  the  French  language  was 
perfect.  He  never  used  a  translation  when  he  could 
procure  the  original ;  and  as  to  the  depth  of  theology, 
those  may  safely  question  it  who  never  crossed  swords 
or  measured  lances  with  him.  Probably  a  more  thor- 
oughly learned  Biblical  scholar  never  entered  a  pulpit. 
And  yet,  Mr.  King  was  modest  in  his  pretensions  ;  he 
underrated  himself;  his  humility  was  so  great,  that  he 
13 


194  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

never  correctly  appreciated  his  own  abilities.  If  he  was 
praised,  he  thought  himself  undeserving ;  if  blamed,  or 
severely  criticised,  he  was  ready  to  believe  that  he  was 
justly  open  to  criticism  or  censure.  Singular  as  the  state- 
ment may  seem  to  many  here,  he  was  extremely  sensitive 
to  praise  or  blame;  he  enjoyed  the  first  less,  and  suffered 
from  the  second  more,  than  most  mortals. 

Although  Mr.  King  preferred  to  labor  in  the  field  of 
literature,  for  which  his  tastes  and  habits  best  adapted 
him,  his  sympathies  for  humanity  were  so  broad,  his  love 
of  country  so  intense,  and  his  patriotism  so  ardent,  that 
upon  the  breaking  out  of  the  rebellion  he  at  once  ar- 
rayed himself  against  treason  and  traitors.  At  a  time 
when  all  the  people  were  stunned  by  the  development  of 
the  designs  of  the  enemies  of  our  country,  Mr.  King 
commenced  to  exhort  from  the  pulpit  and  the  forum. 
He  rose  to  the  majesty  of  the  occasion.  His  eloquence 
was  never  more  fervent,  never  more  convincing.  The 
position  to  be  taken  by  California  among  the  States  was 
deemed  doubtful.  What  was  termed  Southern  chivalry 
had,  since  her  admission  into  the  family  of  States,  always 
exercised  political  and  social  control.  ]^ow  it  became 
rampant.  Loyalty  was  only  a  latent,  not  an  active  senti- 
ment. It  was  uncertain  whether  Unionism,  a  Pacific  Re- 
public, or  Secessionism  would  prevail.  The  masses  were 
undecided  and  wanted  a  leader.  At  this  critical  moment, 
and  as  if  by  the  direct  interposition  of  the  Almighty, 
Mr.  King  stepped  into  the  breach  and  became  the  cham- 
f)ion  of  his  country.  Taking  the  Constitution  and  Wash- 
ington for  his  texts,  he  went  forth  appealing  to  the  peo- 
ple. They  had  not  before  been  taught  their  duty.  They 
had  been  waiting  to  be  told  what  course  to  pursue.  He 
at  once  directed  and  controlled  public  sentiment.  He 
lost  no  opportunity  to  strike  a  blow  at  the  rebellion. 
Visiting  different  sections  of  the  State,  he  kindled  the 
fires  of  patriotism  wherever  he  went,  by  his  matchless 
eloquence  and  unanswerable  arguments. 

Not  the  least  o^  Mr.  King's  efforts  were  his  labors  in 
the  cause  of  the  United  States  Sanitary  Commission.  He 
early  understood  and  appreciated  the  vast  good  which 


THOMAS   STARR   KING.  195 

that  organization  was  capable  of  doing.  He  considered 
it  the  grandest  and  most  magnificent  scheme  of  charity 
the  world  had  ever  known,  and  he  labored  faithfully  to 
promote  its  interests.  Conceiving  that  the  isolation  of 
California  had  deprived  the  people  of  the  State  of  the 
opportunity  of  assisting  the  Government  in  the  suppres- 
sion of  the  rebellion,  he  thought  that  no  better  channel 
could  be  afforded  to  loyal  citizens  to  manifest  their  devo- 
tion to  their  countr}  than  by  contributing  their  money  to 
the  Treasury  of  the  Commission.  Who  does  not  remem- 
ber his  magnetic  speeches  in  Piatt's  Hall,  and  the  liber- 
ality with  which  the  people,  within  a  few  days,  poured 
out  their  hundreds  of  thousands?  For  the  purpose  of 
keeping  loyalty  alive,  and  also  for  the  purpose  of  advanc- 
ing the  cause  of  the  Commission,  he  traveled  through 
nearly  every  section  of  the  State.  He  visited  Oregon, 
N^evada  and  Washington  Territories,  and  even  extended 
his  journey  to  Vancouver.  Wherever  he  went  his  in- 
fluence was  felt,  and  the  people  liberally  and  willingly 
poured  their  money  into  the  Treasury  of  that  organiz- 
ation. I  would  not  detract  from  the  generous  and 
well-timed  efforts  of  those  self-sacrificing  gentlemen  who 
cooperated  with  him  in  his  herculean  labors,  but  I  ex- 
aggerate nothing  when  I  say,  that  to  him,  more  than  to 
all  others,  is  due  the  glory  of  contributing  so  princely  an 
amount  to  the  Treasury  of  the  Commission,  that  Califor- 
nia now  stands  foremost  in  the  sisterhood  of  States,  upon 
the  score  of  generosity.  He  was  just  preparing  another 
campaign  in  the  interior,  when  he  was  stricken  ill. 

I  have  a  large  correspondence  from  him,  written  while 
engaged  in  his  patriotic  travels.  When  absent  from  the 
city,  and  relieved  of  the  cares  incident  to  the  life  of  a 
clergyman,  he  seemed  to  be  particularly  happy.  He 
would  derive  inspiration  from  nature.  His  spirits,  al- 
ways cheerful,  were,  on  such  occasions,  exuberant,  and 
oftentimes  rollicking.  Although  the  tone  of  the  letters 
I  now  propose  to  present  does  not  exactly  accord  with 
the  sadness  that  now  pervades  this  congregation,  I  cannot 
refrain  from  reading  some  of  them  here.  They  present  a 
phase  of  the  character  of  our  dear  pastor,  which  you  have 


196  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

all  enjoyedj  and  which  was  one  element  through  which 
he  reached  the  heart  of  the  people.  His  genial  disposi- 
tion, his  love  of  humor,  and  his  passionate  fondness  of 
Nature,  never  failed  to  shine  brightly  when  engaged  in 
correspondence. 

Early  in  1861,  he  traveled  through  the  northern  part 
of  the  State,  delivering  patriotic  lectures.  From  Yreka 
he  wrote  me  as  follows  : — 

Yreka,  May  29th,  1861. 

Here  I  am,  perched  on  the  top  of  the  State,  where  I 
can  almost  toss  a  copper  or  a  ''five-cent  piece"  over  to 
the  Yankees  in  Oregon — but  I  shan't  try  it,  for  fear  of 
corrupting  their  Union  principles. 

My  health  is  very  good.  The  journey  has  been  quite 
fatiguing.  From  Shasta  to  Yreka  we  were  twenty- seven 
hours  on  the  road,  and  I  had  an  outside  seat  day  and 
night  without  a  shawl.  But  I  am  all  right,  and  my  brain 
has  settled  again  right  side  up,  I  believe. 

The  weather  was  very  cloudy  from  Monday,  when  I 
started,  till  last  Sunday.  Then  from  Shasta  town  I  caught 
the  first  view  of  Shasta  Butte;  it  was  just  after  sunrise, 
and  the  view  was  glorious  indeed.  I  preached  after  the 
vision  for  a  Methodist  minis -.er,  and  ought  to  have 
preached  well ;  but  am  afraid  I  didn't. 

To-night  I  am  to  speak  in  a  village  with  the  sweet 
name  of  'Dead  Wood,"  and  to-morrow  I  shall  dine  and 
sleep  at  your  brother's,  in  Scott  Valley,  and  speak  in  the 
evening  at  the  very  important  and  cultivated  settlement 
of  "Hough  and  Ready."  "Scott's  Bar"  wants  me. 
"Horsetown"  is  after  me.  "  Mugginsville,"  bids  high. 
" Oro  Fino,"  applies  with  a  long  petition  of  names.  "Mad 
Mule"  has  not  yet  sent  in  a  request,  nor  "Piety  Hill," 
nor  "Modesty  Gulch,"  but  doubtless  they  will  be  heard 
from  in  due  time.  The  Union  sentiment  is  strong,  but  the 
seccessionists  are  watchful  and  not  in  despair. 

Yesterday  I  devoted  to  a  study  of  Mt.  Shasta.  I  had 
it  in  view  for  ton  hours,  and  sucked  it  in  as  an  anaconda 
does  a  calf.  It  is  glorious  beyond  expression — it  far  ex- 
ceeds my  conception  of  its  probable  grandeur.  I  am 
glad  that  I  called  my  book  the  "White  Hills.''     To-day  is 


THOMAS   STARR   KING.  197 

very  cloudy,  and  this  mountain  is  shrouded  to  the  base. 
Yesterday  was  the  first  perfect  day  that  has  been  here 
in  a  fortnight,  so  I  was  truly  favored.  You  should  by 
all  means  see  Shasta,  and  the  Scott  Yalley,  where  your 
brothers  live.  The  whole  region  is  sublime.  I  shall  have 
lots  to  report  to  you  on  my  return.  I  hope  your  preach- 
ing has  been  good  and  well  attended. 

With  cordial  regards,  believe  me  sincerely  yours, 

T.  S.  KING. 

The  following  year  he  again  visited  the  northern  part 
of  the  State.  During  the  journey,  he  frequently  addressed 
me.     I  will  read  one  characteristic  letter. 

Yreka,  July  21st,  1862. 

I  have  received  your  telegram  to-day,  for  which,  except 
your  paying  for  it,  please  accept  my  thanks.  I  ordered 
the  word  to  be  sent  to  you — "Answer  paid  here."  If 
you  received  it  and  still  paid,  you  did  a  mean  thing, 
which  can't  be  settled  till  I  return. 

It  is  quite  hot  here  to-day,  but  as  it  is  not  100°  no- 
body calls  it  hot;  anywhere  in  the  nineties,  even  99°  is 
moderate — a  hundred  is  hot.  We  rode  all  night  of  Satur- 
day through  from  Shasta  here,  making  the  trip  in  twenty- 
eight  hours.  The  journey  from  here  will  be  terribly 
hard,  and  I  almost  regret  that  I  made  the  overland  trial. 
From  Jacksonville,  where  we  go  to-morrow,  to  Salem, 
will  be  as  tough  as  it  can  be — it  will  take  three  or  four 
days.  I  doubt  if  I  shall  have  time  to  see  all  I  wish  to 
of  Oregon  and  Puget  Sound.  It  will  take  me  another 
week  to  reach  Portland,  and  I  begin  to  fear  that  I  shall 
have  to  abandon  the  whole  Puget  Sound  and  Yictoria  ex- 
pedition. And  the  expenses  are  simply  frightful — it 
cost  me  over  eighty  dollars  for  passage  from  Marysville  to 
Shasta  town,  and  if  I  travel  through  part  of  Oregon  by 
extras,  as  I  must,  sixty  dollars  a  day  wdll  be  the  low^est  I 
can  do  it  for,  and  I  have  purchased  through  tickets 
besides. 

We  have  seen  Mt.  Shasta  to-day.  He  is  splendid,  but 
not  so  glorious  as  last  year,  for  he  has  not  so  much  snow 


198  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

as  then ;  but  it  is  a  magnificent  sight  indeed.  I  shall  drive 
out  again  at  sunset  to  see  him,  and  then  come  in  to  lec- 
ture here  once  more.  In  spite  of  secession  and  Great- 
house  they  will  have  a  lecture  again.  I  didn't  wish  to, 
and  am  sorry  that  I  consented. 

I  hope  the  church  plans  are  finished,  and  the  working 
near  at  hand.  Good  word  to  everybody.  From  your 
friend.  T.  S.  KING. 

P.  S.— Tell  W.  M.  that  it  lifted  a  load  from  me  to  learn 
that  his  father  is  brighter.  Give  my  sincere  sympathy 
and  greeting  to  the  good  Captain.  T.  S.  K. 

His  last  expedition  to  the  country  appeared  to  in- 
vigorate him  more  than  ever.  His  spirits  ran  unusually 
exultant. 

Lake  Bigler,  June  5th,  1863. 
I  arrived  here  this  forenoon,  about  ten  o'clock.  The 
stage  ride  from  Folsom  to  Placerville  was  very  hard ;  but 
we  took  an  extra  from  Placerville  on  and  found  it  delight- 
ful. The  scenery  is  nobler  than  I  anticipated,  and  the 
situation  of  the  Lake  is  certainly  one  of  the  wonders  and 
masterpieces  of  scenery  belonging  to  our  insignificant 
little  globe.  It  is  of  no  use  to  attempt  to  describe  it — I 
will  tell  you  about  it  when  I  return.  There  should  be  a 
law  compelling  all  Californians  to  visit  the  Lake  on  pain 
of — being  transported  to  the  East.  It  will  be  a  great 
benefit  to  me,  I  am  sure,  to  breathe  the  keen  invigorating 
air  for  a  few  days,  eat  trout  by  the  hundred  weight,  hear 
the  roar  of  the  wind  through  the  noble  pines,  and  look 
at  the  abundant  snow  on  the  superb  peaks  over  the  in- 
land sea.  I  don't  feel  as  though  I  ever  had  a  head — and 
this  in  two  or  three  hours. 

Yours,  sincerely,  T.  S.  K. 

I  will  cull  extracts  from  one  more  letter  written  while 
on  this  tour,  which  illustrate  not  only  his  exultation  of 
spirits  when  relieved  of  professional  duties,  but  also  how 
his  best  thoughts  were  always  of  his  parish. 


THOMAS    STARR   KING.  199 

Lake  Tahoe,  June  25th^  1863. 
Ever  since  Eve  ate  the  apple,  clothing  has  been  nec- 
essary to  the  human  race,  and  J.  C.  M.  (admirable  man) 
became  an  indispensable  element  in  civilization.  I  wore 
my  best  clothes  in  Nevada,  and  my  extreme  hope  now  is 
to  induce  them  to  hold  together  till  I  can  get  back.  But 
if  I  address  the  citizens  Fourth  of  July,  I  must  be  de- 
cently clad.  So  for  a  commission  for  J.  C.  M.  If  he  has 
my  measure,  let  him  make  me  at  once  a  coat,  vest  and 
pants — black.  I  would  like  to  have  the  coat  a  JMth  larger 
than  the  former  one,  which  was  a  little  too  short  in  the 
waist  and  tightish  under  the  arms.  It  fitted  too  wdl.  I 
hate  to  have  a  man  give  me  Jits.  When  a  secessionist 
comes  in,  let  M.  do  his  best  in  that  line.  If  Mr.  M.  can 
make  the  clothes  to  be  ready  on  the  morning  of  July 
Fourth,  and  will  make  them  first  rate^  I  will  wear  a  pla- 
card during  the  delivery  of  the  oration:  "Buy  all  your 
clothes  of  J.  C.  M.,  one  of  the  best  men  on  the  Pacific." 
Will  you  carry  the  message  to  him  at  once? 

The  weather  is  glorious  here.  A  friend  went  out  be- 
fore sunrise  and  caught  four  large  trout,  one  of  which  I 
ate  for  breakfast.  I  have  received  a  noble  hymn  from 
Bartol  for  the  dedication  of  the  church. 

I  feel  ashamed  not  to  be  home;  for  next  Sunday,  yet 
cannot  help  feeling  that  it  is  wise  to  stay.  The  next  four 
months  will  try  my  constitution  more  than  any  similar 
period  of  my  life,  and  I  believe  the  entire  rest  here  will 
be  profit  to  the  parish. 

Tell  Georgie  there  are  three  young  eagles  here  which 
were  taken  from  a  nest  in  a  high  tree  last  week.  They 
have  great  claws  and  splendid  eyes.  How  he  would  like 
to  see  them !  and  I  wish  he  could.  If  I  could  send  one 
of  them  to  him  in  this  letter  I  would,  but  I  am  afraid  he 
would  stick  his  sharp  bill  through  the  paper  before  reach- 
ing Sutter  street. 

Your  friend  always,  T.   S.   KING. 

I  have  no  doubt  that  his  constant  studies  and  his 
anxieties  and  unrest  here  undermined  his  constitution, 
and,  as  the  resolutions  say,  precipitated  his  death.     I  can 


200  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

never  forget  the  last  time  I  saw  him  out  of  his  own  house, 
the  Friday  before  he  died.  He  appeared  much  depressed 
in  spirits — complained  of  aching  bones  and  a  sore  throat, 
and  said  that  he  felt  like  a  sponge  squeezed  dry.  Not 
being  well,  he  was  particularly  seyisitive  that  day — was  un- 
usually thoughtful  and  sad.  When  we  parted,  he  express- 
ed a  fear  that  he  would  not  be  able  to  preach  on  Sunday, 
and  felt  deep  regret  at  the  thought,  for  he  had  made  con- 
siderable preparation  for  the  vesper  service,  which  he  de- 
clared would  be  the  richest  of  all;  and  then,  he  said,  he 
had  several  important  notices  to  give — particularly  the 
one  in  regard  to  the  social  gatherings  on  Wednesday,  in 
which  he  took  so  deep  an  interest,  and  of  the  success 
of  which  he  was  so  very  proud.  '^But,"  said  he,  as  we 
separated,  ''come  around  in  the  morning,  before  you  go 
down."  He  returned  to  his  home  never  to  leave  it,  save 
when  his  spirit  took  its  flight  to  regions  beyond  the  stars. 
Morning  came,  and  Mr.  King  was  perceptibly  worse.  He 
had  changed  materially,  and  I  saw  that  he  was  a  sick  man. 
I  did  not,  however,  appreciate  the  extent  of  his  illness 
until  the  following  evening — Saturday.  He  had  invited 
two  or  three  friends  to  his  house  to  take  a  cup  of  tea  and 
pass  the  evening.  Finding  himself  unable  to  be  person- 
ally present,  he  sent  to  me  to  request  that  I  would  join 
them  at  the  table.  I  knew  that  Mr.  King  must  indeed 
be  very  feeble  to  deprive  himself  of  the  pleasure  of  the 
society  of  his  own  invited  guests — and  he  was  feeble. 
While  we  were  at  supper,  a  bridal  party  came  unexpect- 
edly. Here  his  spirit  of  self-sacrifice  shone  out  resplend- 
ently,  for  although  he  was  too  much  prostrated  to  see 
his  personal  friends,  he  yielded  to  the  urgent  solicitations 
of  these  strangers,  who  he  begged  would  excuse  him; 
arose  from  what  proved  to  be  the  bed  of  death,  dressed 
himself  and  came  down  the  stairs  to  perform  the  mar- 
riage ceremony. 

The  wedding  ought  to  be  doubly  sanctified  to  the  bride 
and  groom  for  the  heroic  spirit  of  kindness  and  generosity 
which  prompted  him,  under  such  circumstances,  to  per- 
form the  ceremony — the  last  professional  act  of  his  life. 

After  the  ceremony,  we  met  in  the  hall.      He  looked 


THOMAS    STARR   KING.  201 

wretchedly.  He  was  on  his  way  to  his  bed,  from  which 
he  was  never  to  rise.  Still  he  was  cheerful,  expressed  his 
regret  that  he  could  not  remain  longer  with  his  friends, 
and  indulged  in  a  few  pleasantries  before  leaving. 

From  that  time  the  disease  "crept  on  with  slow  and 
steady  pace."  On  Wednesday,  his  physician,  in  view  of 
the  great  value  of  his  life  to  his  family  and  the  country, 
advised  with  some  of  his  friends  as  to  the  propriety  of  a 
consultation.  It  was  then  apparent  that  Mr.  King's  life 
was  in  danger.  On  Thursday,  there  seemed  to  be  a  change 
for  the  better,  and  it  was  evident  the  disease  was  mas- 
tered ;  but  he  was  suffering  from  great  physical  prostra- 
tion and  exhaustion  of  the  vital  energies.  If  the  usual 
tone  of  his  system  could  be  restored  and  strength  given 
him,,  there  would  be  no  doubt  of  his  recovery.  But  this 
was  not  to  be.  That  evening,  alarming  symptoms  mani- 
fested themselves.  He  rallied,  however,  and  passed  a 
tolerably  comfortable  night,  sleeping  well  and  breathing 
with  comparative  ease.  We  were  all  much  encouraged, 
and  believed  the  worst  was  passed.  It  was  only  the  calm 
that  precedes  the  storm — a  lull  in  the  fury  of  the  disease 
preparatory  to  a  last  desperate  onset.  For,  on  Friday 
morning,  just  before  six  o'clock,  while  I  was  standing  by 
the  bed-side  with  the  physician,  who  also  had  been  with 
him  all  the  night,  a  perceptible  change  took  place  in  his 
appearance  which  told  too  plainly  that  the  time  for  parting 
had  come — that  the  angel  of  death  was  there,  and  that 
our  dearly  loved  pastor  and  friend  would  soon  pass  "be- 
yond the  sightless  verge  of  this  land  of  tombs." 

The  scene  that  then  followed  no  pen  can  desribe — no 
imagination  can  conceive.  Mr.  King  had  achieved  many 
triumphs  for  us  by  his  toil  and  genius.  The  time  had 
now  come  for  him  to  achieve  the  crowning  triumph  of  all 
— a  triumph  of  his  religion — a  triumph  over  death,  and 
a  vindication  of  his  life  and  character. 

Dr.  Eckel  approached  the  bedside  for  the  purpose  of 
informing  him  that  he  could  not  long  survive.  But  Mr. 
King,  who  had  watched  the  progress  of  his  disease  with 
all  the  precision  of  a  scientific  observer,  and  all  the  cool- 
ness of  a  disinterested   spectator,  though  not  without 


202  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

solicitude,  had  discovered  the  change,  and  anticipated  him 
by  inquiring  as  to  the  character  of  this  new  synipton, 
and  whether  he  could  survive  it.  When  told  that  he 
could  not,  there  was  not  the  slightest  evidence  of  agita- 
tion. He  calmly  and  inquiringly  looked  in  the  doctor's 
face,  and  asked  how  long  he  thought  he  could  live ;  as  if 
he  desired  to  know  as  nearly  as  possible  how  much  time 
was  allowed  him  on  earth  to  make  the  necessary  prepara- 
tion. When  told  but  a  half  an  hour,  he  immediately 
replied,  ^'I  wish  to  make  my  will."  Remembering  that 
he  had  told  me  at  some  time  that  he  had  left  a  will  in 
Boston,  I  answered,  ''Have  you  not  a  will  already,  Mr. 
King?"  He  promptly  replied  that  his  '' little  boy  was  not 
then  born." 

Some  little  time  was  consumed  in  preparing  to  write 
by  his  bed-side,  during  which  he  appeared  to  be  sinking 
rapidly.  I  feared  his  life  would  not  be  spared  until  he 
could  sign  the  document.  But  when  the  preparations 
were  made,  the  power  of  his  will  became  manifest.  Then 
commenced  a  desperate  struggle  to  sustain  life  until  his 
temporal  arrangements  were  completed ;  for  although  he 
had  not  been  able  to  speak  louder  than  a  whisper,  he  now, 
by  a  strong  effort,  raised  his  voice  to  nearly  its  ordinary 
pitch,  and  clearly  and  forcibly  enunciated  his  wishes,  say- 
ing no  more  than  was  necessary,  and  leaving  unsaid  noth- 
ing. Having  finished  this  task,  he  seemed  to  be  much 
exhausted.  I  approaced  his  bed-side  with  the  will  in  my 
hand,  that  it  might  be  read  to  him  previous  to  signature. 
He  had  then  apparently  relapsed  into  a  comatose  state. 
I  said,  ''Mr.  King,  can  you  hear  me?"  He  opened  his 
eyes  with  a  smile  and  said,  "Read  on."  Turning  his 
head  slightly,  in  order  to  catch  every  word,  he  answered, 
at  the  end  of  each  paragraph,  "all  right."  And  when  the 
reading  was  concluded,  and  he  was  asked  if  anything  more 
was  to  be  added,  he  replied,  "No,  it  is  just  as  I  want  it." 
Waiting  a  moment  as  if  in  thought,  he  then  said,  "Add 
that  all  other  wills  are  hereby  revoked ;  you  know  I  have 
another  will  in  Boston."  We  who  had  not  death  staring 
us  in  the  face,  had  failed  to  detect  this  omission  of  so 
vital  a  clause.     He  was  more  calm  than  any  of  us.     He 


THOMAS   STARR   KING.  203 

was  raised  in  bed,  in  order  that  he  might  sign  the  docu- 
ment. With  a  book  for  his  desk,  he  took  the  pen  with  a 
steady  hand,  deliberately  dipped  it  in  the  ink,  and,  to  the 
astonishment  of  all  around,  wrote  his  name  (which  even 
a  well  man  could  not  easily  write  surrounded  by  such  dif- 
ficulties) with  a  firmness  and  rapidity  and  ease  not  sur- 
passed even  by  himself.  He  looked  carefully  at  the  sig- 
nature when  finished,  punctuated  it  as  usual,  reached  the 
pen  to  one  who  was  standing  by,  and  ''laid  him  down 
to  die." 

Recovering  in  a  minute  from  the  exhaustion  of  the 
effort,  he  began  to  bid  farewell  to  those  around  him. 
The  scene  was  sublime  beyond  description.  A  cordial 
smile  played  upon  his  features.  As  one  by  one  ap- 
proached the  bedside  of  the  dying  man.  he  extended 
his  hand  to  them  heartily.  To  one  he  said,  ''Good- 
bye, Colonel;"  and,  seizing  him  with  both  hands,  he  added 
— "God  bless  you."  To  an  attached  domestic  he  said: 
"  Good  bye,  Sarah — I  thank  you  for  all  you  have  done 
for  us."  To  the  faithful  nurse,  "  Good  bye,  Kathreen — 
take  good  care  of  Fretzie." 

He  appeared  to  have  no  thoughts  of  self,  but  was 
speaking  words  of  cheerfulness  and  consolation  to  those 
around  him,  to  the  last  moment.  He  whispered  to  his 
wife,  "Be  sure  and  tell  Dr.  Eckel  I  think  that  he  has 
done  everything  that  a  human  agent  could  possibly  do 
for  me."  He  expressed  to  her  his  wishes  as  to  the  dis- 
position of  his  manuscripts,  and  spoke  freely  with  her 
upon  all  points  in  relation  to  the  family.  He  said,  "Do 
not  weep  for  me,  I  know  it's  right.  I  wish  I  could  make 
you  feel  so.  I  wish  I  could  describe  my  feelings.  It 
is  strange  !  I  feel  all  the  privileges  and  greatness  of  the 
future."  To  his  friend,  Mr.  Low,  he  said:  "I  see  a  great 
future  before  me.  It  already  looks  grand,  beautiful.  I 
am  passing  away  fast.  My  feelings  are  strange."  It  was 
evident  that  Mr.  King  was  watching  with  intellectual  inter- 
est the  approach  of  death,  and  the  passage  beyond  this 
vale  of  tears.  The  condition  and  mysteries  of  the  future 
state  had  been  a  subject  of  passionate  study  and  relig- 
ious speculation  for  many  years.      He  knew  that  they 


204  KEPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

were  now  all  to  be  revealed  to  hiin  in  a  few  minutes,  and 
I  am  persuaded  that  his  spirit  soared  exultant  at  the 
thought.  His  wife  asked  him  if  he  had  any  particular 
message  for  friends  at  home.  He  replied:  "Tell  them  I 
went  lovingly,  trustfully,  and  peacefully.  A  few  mo- 
ments later  he  said,  as  if  dating  his  own  death:  ''To-d^ly 
is  the  fourth  of  March;  sad  news  will  go  over  the  wires 
to-day." 

I  approached  his  bedside — he  extended  his  hand  to 
me,  and  said,  with  a  sweet  smile  playing  upon  his  features, 
^'Good-bye,  Swain;  keep  my  memory  green.  I  wish  you 
to  say  to  my  Society,  that  it  is  my  earnest  desire  that 
they  pay  the  debt  upon  the  Church,  and  not  leave  the 
burden  to  be  carried  by  my  successor.  I  had  rather  they 
would  do  this  than  erect  a  tomb- stone  at  my  grave.  Let 
the  Church,  free  of  debt,  be  my  monument.  I  want  no 
better.  Tell  them  these  were  my  last  icords^  and  say 
^  Good-bye'  to  all  of  them  for  me." 

After  this  he  seemed  to  be  quiet  a  moment,  as  if 
sleeping.  I  spoke  to  him  and  said:  ''Mr.  King,  are  you 
happy?"  Turning  his  head  slightly  and  looking  at  me 
with  his  bright,  full  eyes,  he  answered:  ''Yes;  happy, 
resigned,  trustful." 

"The  Lord  is  my  shepherd:  I  shall  not  want. 

"He  maketh  me  to  lie  down  in  green  pastures:  he 
leadeth  me  beside  the  still  waters. 

"He  restore th  my  soul:  he  leadeth  me  in  the  paths  of 
righteousness  for  his  name's  sake. 

"  Yea,  though  I  walk  through  the  valley  of  the  shadow 
of  death,  I  will  fear  no  evil :  for  thou  art  with  me  ;  thy 
rod,  and  thy  staff,  they  comfort  me. 

"Thou  preparest  a  table  for  me  in  the  presence  of 
mine  enemies ;  thou  anointest  mine  head  with  oil ;  my  cup 
runneth  over. 

"Surely  goodness  and  mercy  shall  follow  me  all  the 
days  of  my  life;  and  I  will  dwell  in  the  house  of  the 
Lord  forever." 

If  I  had  the  tongue  of  an  angel,  I  could  not  depict 
the  triumphant  glory  of  this  scene.  His  voice  was  raised 
to  a  loud  tone,  and  he  lifted  his  hand  and  pointed  his 


5'      ' 


17 

THOMAS   STAER  KING.  '^^''4^^205 


^ 


finger  with  that  peculiar  gesture  so  characteristic  of  him 
in  the  pulpit.  He  did  not  pronounce  this  Psalm  in  rhap- 
sody— nothing  of  the  kind — it  was  said  calmly  and  delib- 
erately and  thoughtfully.  The  Psalm  is  an  expression  of 
confidence  in  God's  grace;  and  what  more  appropriate 
reply  could  be  made  to  the  inquiry  if  he  was  happy  ?  It 
was  a  spontaneous  and  incidental  outpouring,  and  but 
for  such  a  question,  would  probably  never  have  been 
uttered. 

His  charming  little  boy,  not  quite  two  years  of  age, 
was  brought  to  his  bedside.  He  saluted  him  by  saying 
^'Beautiful  boy,"  and  his  last  act  was  to  throw  a  good- 
bye kiss  to  him  as  he  was  taken  from  the  room.  In  a 
few  moments  he  had  passed  away,  like  a  child  falling 
asleep.  He  said  he  had  no  pain  whatever,  but  continued 
to  breathe  slower  and  slower,  and  without  a  pang  or 
a  struggle  closed  his  eyes,  and  ceased  to  live  on  earth. 

In  giving  you  this  narrative,  I  have  simply  performed 
what  I  consider  to  be  a  duty.  I  hope  that  I  have  not 
tired  the  patience  of  this  congregation.  My  relations 
with  Mr.  King  were  at  first  professional,  in  the  capacity 
of  Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Trustees.  Subsequently, 
these  relations  were  absorbed  in  the  higher  and  more 
sacred  relations  of  one  who  loved  and  honored  him. 

During  the  whole  of  my  intercourse  with  him,  I  never 
knew  him  to  utter  a  selfish  thought,  or  do  a  selfish  act, 
or  one,  rightly  interpreted,  that  could  be  tortured  to  mean 
selfish.  His  language  was  always  pure  and  refined,  and 
he  never  uttered  a  sentiment  in  my  presence  that  would 
be  unfit  for  the  most  fastidious  ear.  He  is  now  gone  to 
reap  the  reward  of  his  works  in  Heaven.  "Let  us  fondly 
think  of  him,  and  aspire  towards  him,  and  pray  for  a  purer 
soul,  that  we  may  mount  to  his  celestial  circle  at  last." 
In  the  faith  that  there  is  to  be  meeting  and  recognition 
of  friends  hereafter,  his  friend  Alger,  whom  he  so  loved 
and  honored,  eloquently  says  :  "The  death  of  friends  will 
come  as  a  message  from  the  Great  Father — a  message 
solemn,  yet  kind— laden,  indeed,  with  natural  sadness, 
but  heightened  with  sure  promise,  and  followed  by 
Heavenly  compensations.     If  tears  flow,  they  flow  not  in 


206  REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

scalding  bitterness  from  the  Marah  fountain  of  despair, 
but  in  chastened  joy  from  the  smitten  rock  of  faith." 

The  following  Poem  may  very  appropriately  follow 
the  foregoing  sketch  of  Thomas  Starr  King's  life.  It  is 
from  the  pen  of  his  especial  friend,  John  Gr.  Whitier. 

Gone  to  thy  Heavenly  Father's  rest — 

The  flowers  of  Eien  round  thee  blowing! 
And,  on  thy  ear,  the  murmurs  blest 

Of  Shiloh's  waters  softly  flowing! 
Beneath  that  Tree  of  Life  which  gives 
To  all  the  earth  its  healing  leaves — 
In  the  white  robe  of  angels  clad. 

And  wandering  by  that  sacred  river, 
"Whose  streams  of  holiness  make  glad, 

The  City  of  our  God  forever! 

Noblest  of  spirits !  not  for  thee 

Our  tears  are  shed — our  sighs  are  given : 
"Why  mourn  to  know  thou  art  a  free 

Partaker  of  the  joys  of  Heaven  ? 
Finished  thy  work,  and  kept  thy  faith 
In  Christian  firmness  unto  death: 
And  beautiful,  as  sky  and  earth, 

When  Autumn's  sun  is  downward  going. 
The  blessed  memory  of  thy  worth 

Around  thy  place  of  slumber  glowing! 

But  woe  for  us !  who  linger  still 

With  feebler  strength  and  hearts  less  lowly 
And  minds  less  steadfast  to  the  will 

Of  Him,  whose  every  work  is  holy ! 
For  not  like  thine  is  crucified 
The  spirit  of  our  human  pride : 
And  at  the  bondsman's  tale  of  woe. 

And  for  the  outcast  and  forsaken, 
Not  warm  like  thine,  but  cold  and  slow. 

Our  weaker  sympathies  awaken. 

Oh,  for  the  death  the  righteous  die ! 

An  end  like  Autumn's  day  declining. 
On  human  hearts  as  on  the  sky. 

With  holier,  tenderer  beauty  shining: 
As  to  the  parting  soul  were  given 
The  radiance  of  an  opening  Heaven ! 
As  if  that  pure  and  blessed  light, 

From  off  the  Eternal  Altar  flowing. 
Were  bathing  in  its  upward  flight, 

The  spirit  to  its  worship  going. 


THOMAS  STARR  KING.  207 


^^(tur^  0i  §a\  ^Itasi.  ^tmx  png, 

Delivered  before  the  -Dashaway  Association  of  San 
Francisco,  July  10th,  1860. 

I  have  always  considered  it  a  high  privilege  to  address  or  speak 
in  behalf  of  so  noble  an  association  as  the  one  before  me,  or  of  any- 
subject  connected  with  its  condition  and  progress.  It  is  not  my 
intention  to  speak  of  the  great  principle  endorsed  and  honored  by 
the  Dashaways,  nor  of  the  abstract  and  moral  grounds  of  total  ab- 
stinence. I  purpose  attempting  no  panoramic  sketch  of  dissipa- 
tion— no  grouping  and  massing  of  its  unknown  effects.  I  prefer  to 
address  myself  more  to  the  fresh  and  practical  effect — and  it  were 
well,  if  in  every  phase  of  the  social  fabric  we  all  did  the  same.  I  would 
rejoice  if  in  every  village  and  hamlet  of  this  State  the  gifted  man  of 
eloquence  could  be  heard  cursing  the  spirit  of  Drink  and  Kuin,  his 
words  a  tissue  of  its  woes,  presenting  in  hideous  aspect  the  unsat- 
isfied cravings,  the  unquieted  doubts  and  fears,  the  tottering  pros- 
perity, the  undermined  strength,  the  blighted  hopes,  the  defeated 
aspirations,  the  seared  promise,  the  ruined  happiness,  and  the  fear- 
ful woes  engendered  and  fostered  and  quickened  by  that  abhorrent 
Spirit  which  has  sapped  the  vigor  of  our  great  nation,  whose  his- 
tory talks  of  so  many  prominent  men  whose  minds  have  wavered 
and  their  reason  fled;  of  sages  whose  towering  intellects  have  be- 
come but  as  grand  and  imposing  ruins  before  it;  of  the  throne  of 
reason  with  its  delicate  nerve  of  conscience  befogged  and  bewil- 
dered; of  war,  and  duelling,  and  lust,  and  murder;  of  the  teeming 
scaffold,  the  insidious  disease,  the  frightful  insanity,  the  drivelling 
idiocy;  of  the  wasted  field,  the  dilapidated  house,  the  scanty  board, 
the  untenanted  hall,  and  the  husband-deserted  hearih,  with  the 
heart-weary  wife  sitting  shivering  beside  it;  of  the  forsaken  child- 
ren, so  interesting  in  their  very  tenderness  of  helplessness — that 
Spirit  less  scrupulous  than  the  majesty  of  Denmark  1  But  it  re- 
quires something  more  than  the  eloquence  which  vindicates  and 
sustains  and  fructifies  an  intangible  principle  to  stay  the  evil — 
something  better  than  the  most  vigorous  descriptions  of  all  I  have 
imagined — something  which  wastes  no  influence  that  can  possibly 
be  excited — something  which  shall  do  more  than  a  score  of  the 
most  eloquent  orators — organized  action !  An  organization  is  far 
greater  than  an  idea,  for  a  principle  is  always  connected  with  it; 
but  it  is  a  corporeal  idea — a  principle  in  action  !  and  what  is 
grander  in  the  domain  of  awful  effects?  Until  thus  clothed,  an 
idea  is  powerless,  and  bears  about  the  same  analogy  to  its  active 
operations  as  does  a  shadowy  ghost  to  a  sturdy  man.  To  illustrate 
the  matter  I  will  tell  a  short  anecdote.  Twenty  years  ago,  in  Bos- 
ton, lived  a  man — an  artist,  a  dear  friend  of  mine — who  was  very 
fond  in  his  youth  of  talking  to  a  most  eloquent  preacher,  the  fame 


208  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

of  whose  fiery  genius  was  spread  abroad  throughout  the  continent. 
One  night  they  were  sitting  talking  together  in  the  luxuriantly 
furnished  parlor  upon  the  Divine's  favorite  theme — the  dignity  of 
human  nature.  He  was  discoursing  more  particularly  of  what  a 
true  Christian  spirit  should  do  for  the  abandoned,  the  outcast  and 
the  desolate.  Suddenly,  in  the  midst  of  his  converse — in  the 
richest  paths  of  the  grand  fields  of  philanthropy^  he  had  opened  to 
the  entranced  vision  of  the  artist — the  door-bell  rang  violently! 
The  servant  came  up  hastily,  and  said  a  man  had  forced  himself 
into  the  house  and  demanded  to  see  the  preacher.  Together,  he 
and  the  artist  went  out  to  see  the  strange  visitor,  who  had  forced 
his  way  into  the  house  in  an  intoxicated  state.  He  said  he  was 
starving,  aud  begged  the  preacher  to  give  him  wherewithal  to  sup- 
port life.  Here  was  a  man  drunken,  shivering  with  cold,  famished 
with  hunger,  and  begging  sustenance — a  rough  worm  to  hide  in 
the  rich  cocoon  of  a  preacher's  elegant  mansion.  But  his  delicate 
sensibilities  shrank  from  this  rude  contact  with  the  actual,  and  he 
exclaimed,  dolefully:  "What  shall  I  do  with  this  man?" — then, 
* '  I  will  send  for  an  officer,  to  take  him  to  the  station-house. " 
"Stay,"  cried  my  artist  friend,  who  had  been  wondering  at  his 
strange  conduct  and  inconsistency;  "  I  did  not  listen  to  your  in- 
terrupted discourse  without  becoming  deeply  impressed  by  the 
sublimity  of  benevolence  and  good-fellowship  between  man  and 
man,  so  gorgeously  developed  by  your  glowing  tongue.  It  taught 
me  my  duty.     I  will  take  the  man." 

So,  taking  him  by  the  hand,  he  led  him  from  the  imaginative 
philanthropist,  who  had  shrunk  nervously  back  from  this  one  atom 
of  degradation,  took  him  to  a  restaurant,  gave  him  a  bowl  of  highly 
prosaic  clam  soup,  and  gave  him  bed  and  board  in  his  house  till  he 
obtained  work.  Here  was  a  bit  of  organizing  power  put  in  work- 
ing order  by  an  idea. 

To  drunkenness,  a  banded  and  fierce  wordy  opposition  is  not 
enough.  Society  wants  more.  Neither  can  the  evil  be  overthrown 
by  the  strong  force  of  social  pressure,  unaided.  New  forces  must 
start.  A  new  corj)orate  body  is  needed  to  act  against  the  corporate 
despotism  of  drunkenness.  This  barrier  is  the  Dashaway  Associa- 
tion, which  gives,  in  its  Home  for  the  Inebriate,  protection  and 
nutriment,  and  thus  holds  out  organic  temptations  to  the  drunk- 
ard to  forsake  his  career  of  excesses.  A  great  many  people  are 
contented  with  the  recoil  of  their  sensibilities  from  evil.  From  de- 
grading companionships  they  shrink  back.  This  is  the  natural 
tendency  of  moral  characters  who  separate  themselves  from  the 
worthless  and  depraved;  and  so  we  see  streaks  of  good  and  bad  in 
all  nature — in  nations  and  in  cities — like  the  stratifications  of  the 
earth's  geological  formation.  This  tendency  is  governed  by  the 
great  law  of  retribution — of  punishment  and  reward — of  life  and 
death.  Christianity  works  at  right  angles  with  these  strata,  and, 
coming  in  contact  with  all,  stakes  the  organic  fibres  of  a  better 
nature  to  work  against  the  bad,  and  she  does  it  by  the  word  lle- 
demption,  and  by  the  method  Grace.     Every  parish  is  composed  of 


THOMAS   STARR  KING.  209 

an  aggregated  idea,  differing  from  other  parishes — and  even  **the 
Word  "  is  a  stratified  Revelation.  But  if  this  cold  classification — 
this  sedimentary  process — goes  on  the  good  and  bad  in  associated 
districts,  diverging  from  the  great  centre,  and  rapidly  separating 
and  keeping  as  thoroughl}^  apart  from  each  other  as  do  the  Amer- 
icans and  Chinese,  where  will  it  end  ?  Redemption  by  sympathy 
of  classes — that  is  the  binding  link  now  being  forged  by  the  Dasha- 
away,  and  that  is  eminently  Christian.  This  Association  is  actu- 
ated by  the  proper  principle,  and  pursues  the  proper  course.  It 
pledges  itself,  not  others,  and  indulges  in  no  denouncement  of 
others,  but  looks  with  the  sacred  eye  of  Pity  at  the  debased  of  so- 
ciety, and  beaming  with  the  bright  purity  of  Benevolence,  takes 
him  by  the  hand. 

This  Association  is  composed  of  all  classes,  and  consequently 
the  silent  appeals  made  by  practical  workings  are  responded  to  by 
all  grades.  Its  progress  has  been  astonishing — like  the  great 
Washingtonian  movement,  which,  twenty  years  ago,  swept  like  a 
whirlwind  through  the  country" — arousing  from  its  lethargj',  and 
awaking  from  its  latent  inertness,  the  burning  spirit  of  eloquence, 
till  now  slumbering  in  the  brains  or  closeted  in  the  thick-tongued 
and  besotted  victim  of  the  hellish  vice  which  his  own  voice  was  now 
raised,  trumpet-toned,  to  crush.  Every  here  and  there,  through- 
out the  States,  sprang  up  an  intellectual  and  lire-endowed  orator 
— like  a  Lazarus  bursting  his  own  bonds,  and  going  forth  to  preach 
to  others  suasion  and  sympathy,  rather  than  law.  But  the  seasoii 
of  revival  soon  fled.  And  so  it  is  ever,  that  the  seasons  when  men 
are  used  as  pipes  through  which  to  blow  the  Divine  breath  of  In- 
spiration are  short,  and  soon  pass  away.  Extraordinary  success 
always  brings  extraordinary  trials  in  its  brilliant  train  which  must 
be  met  with  becoming  fortitude.  From  what  I  have  seen  and 
heard  and  read  of  the  operations  of  your  society,  since  my  anival 
in  this  city,  I  should  judge  that  the  first  excitement  is  over,  and 
the  enthusiasm  of  principle  may  now  be  created  to  advantage. 
The  Twelve  Apostles  were  each  representatives  of  different  charac- 
ters, for  Jesus  knew  that  by  choosing  them  he  must,  to  accomplish 
his  aim  of  regenerating  all,  take  types  of  the  different  classes.  Else 
he  would  fail  to  reach  their  sympathies.  Peter,  James  and  John, 
the  three  most  loved  and  favored  of  them  all — how  diverse  in  posi- 
tion, character,  style  and  temperament  were  they  !  In  their  inter- 
course with  the  people  they  touched  three  separate  keys — initial 
notes,  which  were  no  more  alike  than  are  the  deep,  hoarse  tones  of 
the  trombone  to  the  silvery  sweetness  of  the  flute.  If  one  tried  to 
be  the  other  it  would  be  as  jarring  as  the  note  a  on  the  piano  in- 
sisting on  sounding  e  ! 

One  thing  you  should  be  careful  of.  Be  not  too  easily  swayed 
from  your  original  plan  by  the  evil  whispering  of  those  who  would 
prove  your  ruin.  Some  say  you  are  not  strict  enough — others  that 
you  have  resolved  to  keep  alive  an  uncompromising  spirit.  It  is 
impossible  to  please  all.  Keep  on  in  your  own  way,  (as  originally 
marked  out  by  you)  in  that  broad  missionary  spirit  which  has  en- 

14 


210  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE  PACIFIC. 

nobled  your  association.  The  plan  could  not,  I  think,  "be  better. 
You  have  steered  clear  of  creeds,  obtained  the  respect  and  admira- 
tion of  nearly  all,  and  incurred  the  animosity  of  none.  You  keep 
the  common  Sabbath,  assembling  to  hear  your  preachers,  and  lend- 
ing additional  sanctity  to  the  day  by  the  confirmation  of  those  who 
have  passed  the  period  of  their  probationary  trial.  Your  institu- 
tion, as  it  now  stands,  is  a  great  and  splendid  spectacle — a  new  and 
magnificent  effect  !  Guard  it,  then,  with  most  sedulous  vigilance; 
and  if  you  do,  the  novel  and  glorious  movement  must  prove  a  last- 
ing impulse  of  practical  results.  Now  is  the  time,  if  ever,  to  stand 
firm. 

The  Home  for  the  Inebriate,  a  part  of  your  admirable  organism, 
must  be  carried  on.  State  aid  should  be  invoked.  It  is  now  in  its 
mere  infancy,  and  must  be  raised  to  a  vigorous  maturity.  It  was 
honor  enough  for  any  convention  of  brains  to  devise  the  plan,  shown 
by  its  excellent  working  to  be  perfect;  and  I  think,  by  every  con- 
sideration of  justice,  of  honor  and  of  duty,  (regardless  of  mercy) 
the  Legislature  is  bound  to  foster  such  an  institution.  The  State 
provides  asylums  for  the  insane,  the  deaf,  dumb  and  blind.  In- 
sanity is  a  disease.  Medical  men  agree  that  the  appetite  for  liquor 
is  a  disease,  requiring  medical  treatment.  How  can  the  State  re- 
fuse that  bounty  which  will  foster  an  institution  whose  workings 
will  save  the  State  expense  in  others  ?  You  have  long  borne  the 
onerous  burthen  of  its  support.  Eaise  private  subscriptions,  ask 
church  collections  to  support  it  in  the  mean  time — till  you  gain 
State  aid — and  scarcely  one,  I  trust,  will  refuse  ;  for  crowd  all  the 
godliest  churches  of  the  universe  together,  those  walls  which  gleam 
with  the  loftiest  lustre  of  Christianity,  and  the  supreme  church — the 
Home  of  the  Inebriate — would  burn  with  the  richest  tinge  ! 

There  is,  too,  it  seems  to  me,  a  fine  opportunity  for  your  asso- 
ciation to  confer  another  immeasurable  benefit  upon  society.  Men- 
tal culture  is  painfully  neglected  in  our  land.  It  makes  me  sad  to 
think  of  the  feebleness  of  intellect  exhibited  by  us.  A  well  select- 
ed library,  free  to  all,  would  indeed  be  a  boon  to  the  masses.  What 
new  and  fascinating  fields  do  libraries  offer  for  intellectual  rambles  ! 
The  young  men  of  the  present  day,  of  all  classes,  are  lamentably 
ignorant.  Their  mental  powers  after  their  school  days,  are  wofully 
neglected.  They  are  false  and  perilous  traitors  to  themselves. 
True,  they  do  much  newspaper  reading,  and  there  is  much  to  ad- 
mire and  profit  in  many  newspapers;  but  after  all,  it  is  mere  desul- 
tory reading.  The  period  between  youth  and  marriage  is  the 
noblest  time  for  reading  and  storing  the  mind  with  the  riches  of 
literature — which  can  best  be  done  by  a  properly  systematized 
course  of  pleasurable  study — a  path  lifting  the  student  out  of  the 
consciousness  of  the  mere  animal,  making  him  lose  and  forget  his 
taste  for  sensualities.  Literary  matter  may  not  create  character, 
but  it  may  influence  it.  Genius,  a  gift  often  connected  with  erratic 
fire,  is  ever  hungry  for  intellectual  food;  but  because  it  has  in  some 
cases  floated  down  to  depravity,  is  no  argument  against  indulging 
the  mental  appetite.     Libraries  open  up  to  us  the  delicate  organiza- 


THOMAS   STARR   KING.  211 

tion  of  the  brain,  the  wonderful  formation  of  the  eye,  and  their 
perfect  connection ;  the  strange  meaning  of  the  hand,  the  scratches 
upon  the  rocks,  the  marvelous  beauties  of  the  flower,  the  mysteries 
of  the  ocean,  the  land,  the  clouds,  the  air,  and  the  stany  wonders 
of  the  heavens  !  We  have  some  collections  to  be  proud  of— the 
Mercantile  Library,  and  Odd  Fellows'  Hall,  and  Mechanics'  Insti- 
tute— and  I  think  every  man  as  he  passes  those  structures  in  his 
street  walk,  should  breathe  a  small  prayer  for  the  blessings  con- 
ferred by  them.  Your  library  rooms  may  be  made  a  mossy  foun- 
tain of  knowledge,  so  vastly  greater  than  desultory  addresses. 
And  then  the  long  autumn  and  winter  evenings  are  coming  on 
apace.  Perilous  times  for  the  young  men  !  Tempt  them  with  the 
garnered  mental  treasures  of  astronomy,  botany,  chemistry,  and  all 
the  arts  and  sciences.  It  is  written  that  oiu-  first  parents  were 
tempted  by  the  Serpent  with  the  fruit  of  the  Tree  of  Knowledge, 
but  alas,  I  fear  that  the  men  of  now,  would  have  to  work  hard  to 
reach  the  elevation  of  Adam's  fall  ! 

In  the  brawny  chest  and  muscular  arm  of  Heenan  there  is  some- 
thing  to  admire,  something  more  than  a  mere  idea;  and  the  batter- 
ing of  a  human  face  is  not  half  so  disfiguring  as  the  traces  of  one 
night's  orgie.  Milton  has  made  fiends  interesting,  and  even  mur- 
der and  war  may  be  woven  into  readable  shape ;  but  there  is  no 
room  for  so  debased  a  form  as  the  Demon  of  Alcohol  in  Mn^TON's 
Pandemonium — a  form  more  sickening  than  the  grizzly  terror  which 
guarded  the  portals  of  Hell. 


#rat((Jtt  by  §tv,  mn.  ^im  §m0. 

Delivered  before  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Free  and  Accepted 
Masons  of  California,  at  its  Annual  Communication, 
May,  a.  l.  5863. 

Most  Worshipful  Grand' Master  and  Brethren  of  the  Grand  Lodge: 

In  offering  salutation  to  you,  witH  cordial  thanks  for  the  honor 
and  privilege  connected  with  the  office  and  duty  you  have  entrust- 
ed to  me,  I  shall  only  attempt  briefly,  in  the  discharge  of  that  duty, 
to  note  two  or  three  points  of  harmony  and  correspondence  between 
the  structure  and  working  of  our  Order  and  the  handiwork  of  the 
Almighty  in  the  external  world. 

We  belong  to  the  great  Fraternity  of  Free  and  Accepted  Masons. 
The  implements  of  our  Craft,  however,  are  no  longer  for  operative 
toil.  We  do  not  now,  as  part  of  our  covenant,  set  fast  the  Doric 
pillar,  nor  release  from  marble  the  ornament  of  the  Corinthian 
capital.  We  no  longer  sketch  the  complications  of  Gothic  piles, 
and  cement  the  buttresses  of  haughty  towers,  and  carry  up,  course 
by  course,  the  aspiring  stones  of  pinnacles.     The  tools  of  the  Craft 


212  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

are  representative  now  of  speculative  truth,  and  speak  to  the  inward 
eye  of  laws  and  duties  that  make  life  noble  and  character  symmet- 
rical and  strong.  Yet,  though  we  build  no  structures  such  as  our 
ancient  brethren  reared;  though  the  temples  in  which  we  meet  are 
not  the  monuments  of  our  own  proficiency  in  the  art  whose  instru- 
ments we  cherish;  we  are  builders  and  preservers  in  a  richer  sense ; 
for  our  Order  itself  grows  stronger  and  more  precious  with  years, 
and  its  uses  are  more  varied  and  beautiful  with  the  lapse  of  time. 

The  Masonic  organization  is  far  more  remarkable  and  wonderful 
than  the  noblest  edifice  it  ever  added  to  the  landscape  of  history. 
Let  us  pause,  brethren,  on  the  word  ''organization."  That  is 
the  great  word  of  the  world.  The  Almighty  is  the  Oi^ganizer.  He 
creates  elements  in  order  to  mingle  and  fraternize  them  in  com- 
position and  products.  In  the  original  chaos,  matter  was  unor- 
ganized. The  process  of  death  is  dis-organization.  All  the  marvels 
of  beauty,  all  the  victories  of  life,  are  exhibitions  and  triumphs 
of  organizing  force.  The  most  fascinating  chapters  of  science  are 
those  whch  unveil  to  us  the  vast  fields  w4iich  the  forces  traverse 
that  sustain  the  highest  forms  of  life  upon  the  globe. 

A  crystalized  gem  is  the  most  attractive  form  of  solid  matter, 
because  more  thought  and  skill  are  expended  in  its  structure  than 
in  any  other  stony  combination  of  atoms.  A  flower  is  of  a  higher 
order  of  charm,  for  more  various  and  more  subtile  elements  are 
wrought  into  its  composite  loveliness  ;  and  then  the  provisions  for 
the  growth  and  support  of  the  flower  affect  us  more  profoundly  still 
— the  mixture  of  the  air,  the  various  powers  hidden  in  the  sun-ray, 
the  alternation  of  daylight  and  gloom,  the  laws  of  evaporation  and 
of  clouds,  and  the  currents  in  the  air  that  carry  moisture  from  zone 
to  zone  for  the  nutriment  of  vegetation.  "VVe  soon  find  in  nature 
tJiat  no  element  or  force  exists  unrelated.  It  is  in  harness  with 
other  elements  for  a  common  labor,  and  an  interchange  of  service 
for  a  common  end.  Organization  is  the  idea  which  science  impresses 
upon  us  as  the  secret  of  life,  health,  power  and  beauty  in  her  realm. 
An  organized  product  can  appear  only  from  forces  of  nature,  which 
are  the  movements  of  the  Divine  will.  Man  can  arrange,  manu- 
facture, weave,  forge,  adjust,  refine ;  but  he  cannot  organize  as  na- 
ture does.  He  can  make  machines  through  which  the  forces  of  na- 
ture will  play  for  cunning  ends ;  but  he  cannot  conjure  the  principle 
of  his  life  into  any  mould  of  his  making.  He  can  start  shuttles 
that  will  weave  a  carpet  for  the  reception  room  of  a  palace  in  one 
loom ;  but  he  can  build  no  mill,  he  can  start  no  laboratory,  where 
the  warp  and  woof  of  the  banana  leaf  can  be  plaited.  He  can  tell 
how  the  sugar  is  secreted  in  the  veins  of  a  clover  blossom ;  but  he 
cannot  make  the  clover  seed.  And  you  might  as  well  ask  the  wisest 
scientific  man  to  fashion  a  world,  as  to  create  one  of  the  green 
needles  which  a  pine  tree  produces  by  the  million,  or  one  of  the 
innumerable  blades  of  grass. 

But  the  great  glory  of  organization  is  when  it  is  revealed  in  hu- 
man life.  The  highest  structure  of  the  creative  art  is  the  body  of 
man,  representing  in  its  complexity  and  the  friendly  partnership  of 


THOMAS   STARR  KING.  213 

its  powers,  the  system  and  coordination  whicli  society  should  attain; 
and  it  is  a  marked  epoch  in  histoiy  when  a  new  movement  is  made 
which  succeeds  in  organizing  men  widely  and  permanently  for  no- 
ble and  beneficent  ends. 

We  are  not  intended  to  be  separate,  private  persons,  but  rather 
fibres,  fingers,  and  limbs.  The  aim  of  religion  is  not  to  i^erfect  us  as 
persons,  looking  at  each  of  us  apart  from  others.  The  Creator 
does  not  propose  to  polish  souls  like  so  many  pins, — each  one 
dropping  off  clean  and  shiny,  with  no  more  organic  relations  to 
each  other  than  pins  have  on  a  card.  We  are  made  to  be  rather 
like  the  steel,  the  iron,  and  the  brass,  which  are  compacted  into  an 
engine,  where  no  modest  bolt  or  rivet  is  placed  so  that  it  does  not 
somehow  contribute  to  the  motion,  or  increase  the  efficiency  of  the 
organism. 

In  savage  life,  men  are  slightly  organized.  A  savage  tribe  is 
like  a  heap  of  sand ;  the  atoms  are  distinct ;  they  are  aggregated, 
not  combined ;  no  beautiful  product  springs  from  them ;  and  the 
first  wind  of  disaster  blows  them  away.  A  half-civilized  nation  is 
but  slightly  organized,  so  far  as  noble  purposes  and  high  senti- 
ments are  concerned.  Progress  is  marked  by  wider,  higher,  finer 
developments,  issuing  from  the  combination  and  copartnership  of 
souls.  There  can  be  no  such  things  as  justice,  until  men,  in  large 
masses,  are  rightly  related  to  each  other.  There  can  be  no  pros- 
perity in  a  community  until  the  majority  of  its  people  are  so  or- 
ganized that  their  minds  receive  training,  and  their  energies  are 
unfettered.  There  can  be  no  happiness  except  as  the  result  of 
proper  relations  permanently  established  between  the  different 
classes  or  strata  of  the  social  world. 

*'No  man  liveth  to  himself."  "Whether  one  member  suffer,  all 
the  members  suffer  with  it ;  or  one  member  be  honored,  all  the 
members  rejoice  with  it."  "  How  good  and  how  pleasant  it  is  for 
brethren  to  dwell  together  in  unity !"  When  a  compacted  unity  of 
living  beings  is  seen,  one  of  the  most  precious  objects  for  which 
the  world  was  built  is  attained.  A  large  and  well  ordered  family  is 
such  a  jewel.  A  neighborhood  at  peace,  and  free  from  scandal,  is 
— or,  rather  I  should  say,  would  be — a  still  more  precious  jewel 
of  the  same  quality.  A  State,  a  Nation,  so  constructed  that  the 
forces  of  all  ranks  of  its  inhabitants  should  be  brought  into  play, 
and  the  rights  of  all  ranks  should  be  saved  from  pressure,  would 
be  a  more  marvelous  and  a  more  inspiring  structure  than  the  ma- 
terial order  and  harmony  of  our  solid  globe. 

It  is  in  the  light  of  this  principle  that  the  value  and  nobleness 
of  Masonry  appear.  I  say  again,  that  no  edifice  which  our  ancient 
brethren  reared  was  equal  to  the  living  structure  of  which  they  and 
we  are  portions.  How  often  we  read,  or  hear  with  pride,  that  in 
the  building  of  the  first  temple,  the  stones  were  made  ready  before 
they  were  brought  together;  so  that  there  was  neither  hammer,  nor 
ax,  nor  any  tool  of  iron  heard  in  the  house  while  it  was  building- ! 
What  is  that  to  the  growth  of  our  Order  itself?  How  quiet  the 
process,  yet  how  constant !     Who  hears  the  noise  of  it?    Who  sees, 


214  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

or  knows,  when  the  sound  timber  and  the  approved  stones  are 
brought  together,  and  fitted,  and  lifted  to  their  place  amidst  the 
roar,  and  strife,  and  selfishness  of  the  world?  Yet,  in  thousands 
of  towns  and  cities  of  the  world:  in  all  its  zones:  in  almost  all 
communities  and  tongues  of  men,  this  work,  in  substantial  sameness 
of  method  and  pledge,  is  going  on.  The  Temple  of  Solomon  must 
stand  as  it  was  built.  It  could  not  enlarge  itself.  It  could  not 
bud  with  smaller  temples,  and  then  take  them  in  under  a  widening 
roof  or  a  swelling  dome.  Neither,  when  some  of  its  pillars  decayed, 
could  it  restore  its  own  decrease,  as  the  living  cedars  of  Lebanon 
repair  their  wastes  and  renew  their  leaves.  But  our  conscious  tem- 
ple does  all  this,  and  noiselessly.  It  fills  in  its  losses;  it  enlarges 
its  sweep  and  sway;  it  does  it. through  men  of  all  conditions,  and 
classes,  and  races;  and  still  it  stands  in  its  old  proportions,  though 
in  greater  amplitude — symmetrical,  mysterious,  sublime. 

This  is  the  most  remarkable  social  organization  of  the  world. 
None  on  the  globe,  with  half  so  many  elements  in  its  composition, 
is  so  old.  We  are  told  of  late  that  excavations  made  under  modern 
Jerusalem  disclose  remnants  of  the  old  city  in  various  periods  of 
its  history.  Portions  of  the  massive  masonry  of  the  time  of  Solo- 
mon are  uncovered.  Above  these  appear  fragments  of  the  work  of 
Zerubbabel.  On  a  higher  historic  stratum  are  specimens  of  work- 
manship from  the  age  of  Herod  the  Great;  and  still  above  these, 
but  below  the  level  of  the  present  city,  are  remains  of  the  construc- 
tive toil  ordered  by  Justinian.  We  delight  to  feel,  brethren,  that 
the  past,  measured  by  as  many  ages,  is  under  us ;  but  it  is  not  be- 
neath us  in  a  broken  symmetry,  and  a  dead  grandeur,  as  under  Jeru- 
salem. It  is  rather  beneath  us  as  the  roots  are  beneath  a  tree,  and 
as  the  central  rings  are  hidden  in  the  trunk.  They  give  power  and 
pith  to  the  structure  still.  They  are  part  of  its  present  majesty, 
sources  of  its  living  vigor,  prophecies  of  its  future  strength. 

We  should  take  satisfaction,  brethren — nay,  a  noble  pride — in 
the  consciousness  of  the  age  and  vastness  of  our  organization.  If  a 
stone  in  St.  Peter's  could  be  conscious,  or  any  portion  of  the  wall, 
or  spire,  of  Strasburg  Cathedral,  do  you  not  think  that  it  would 
rejoice  in  its  position;  that  it  would  be  exultant  over  its  partnership 
with  other  stones  in  rearing  the  grandeur  of  such  a  pile  for  such 
worthy  uses?  If  any  fragment  of  such  an  edifice  could  be  con- 
scious, and  did  not  feel  any  pride,  or  any  privilege,  in  its  position 
and  its  call,  would  its  indifference  be  a  merit,  or  a  shame  rather? 

How  shall  it  be  with  us  ?  Shall  we  not  feel  that  there  is  dignity, 
that  there  is  privilege,  in  being  living  fibres  of  an  organization  which 
has  passed  from  one  era  of  the  world  to  another;  which  is  older 
than  the  oldest  empire  of  Christendom;  which  has  on  its  roll  names 
that  sparkle  in  history  like  the  sovereign  stars;  and  which  exists, 
not  for  purposes  of  private  aggrandizement,  or  the  selfish  joy  of  its 
members,  but  to  give  deeper  root  to  good  principles  in  the  world, 
and  to  diffuse  the  spirit  of  peace  and  order?  If  a  Mason  is  not 
grateful  and  glad  over  his  fellowship,  it  is  because  he  does  not  ap- 
preciate the  value  in  the  world  of  the  organization  of  good. 


THOMAS    BTARR   KING.  215 

The  idea  of  organization  is  connected  wdth  the  idea  of  order. 
And  here,  also,  Masoniy  reflects  to  us,  or  rather  illustrates  in  a 
higher  form,  the  wisdom  breathed  by  the  Great  Architect  through 
nature.  It  is  said  that  order  is  heaven's  first  law.  It  is  no  less 
tiTie,  brethren,  that  it  is  earth's  first  privilege.  It  is  the  condition 
of  beauty,  of  liberty,  and  of  peace. 

Think  how  the  principle  of  order  for  all  the  orbs  of  the  solar 
system  is  hidden  in  the  sun.  The  tremendous  power  of  his  gravi- 
tation reaches  thousands  of  millions  of  miles,  and  hampers  the 
self-will — the  centrifugal  force — of  mighty  Jui)iter;  of  Uranus  with 
his  staff  of  moons;  of  cold,  and  distant,  and  invisible  Neptune. 
There's  a  Grand  Lodge  for  you,  in  which  these  separate  Masters 
are  held  in  check  by  the  Most  AVorshipful  Grand  Master's  power ! 
Nay,  they  tell  us  now  of  a  central  sun  around  which  all  other  suns, 
those  fixed  stars  of  the  firmanent,  bend  and  sweep.  If  this  sug- 
gests p.n  argument  by  analogy  in  favor  of  a  World  Congress  of  Ma- 
sons, with  a  Grand  Lodge  of  Nations,  and  a  Sujoreme  Master, 
whose  power  runs  over  seas  and  across  continents,  girdling  the 
earth  like  a  magnetic  stream,  I  leave  it  to  be  discussed  by  the  Com- 
mittee on  Correspondence,  in  the  next  volume  of  our  Grand  Secre- 
tary's admirable  reports.  But  in  the  case  of  our  planetaiy  system, 
is  it  any  hardship  that  our  separate  globes  are  so  strictl}^  under 
rule,  and  pay  obeisance  to  the  sun?  Is  it  not  their  chief  blessing, 
their  sovereign  pidvilege  ?  What  if  the  order  were  less  strict  and 
punctual;  what  if  the  force  in  these  globes,  that  chafes  under  the 
central  rein,  and  champs  its  curb,  should  be  triumphant  for  a  day? 
What  if  the  earth  should  gain  liberty  against  the  pull  of  the  sun  ? 
Beauty  from  that  moment  would  begin  to  wither;  fertility  would 
begin  to  shrivel.  The  hour  of  seeming  freedom  would  be  the 
dawn  of  anarchy;  for  the  sun's  rule  and  apparent  despotism  is  only 
the  ctern  and  beneficent  condition  of  perpetual  harmony,  bounty 
and  joy. 

Everywhere,  order  is  the  great  interest.  What  humanity  needs  is 
the  fulfillment  of  these  indications  of  nature :  freedom  with  order; 
a  proper  consciousness  of  worth  in  every  breast;  a  recognition  by 
each  man  of  the  worth  and  claims  of  every  other;  and  an  acknow- 
ledgment by  all  of  a  common  and  controlling  law.  This  idea  of 
order,  fulfilled  in  the  architecture  of  nature,  is  committed  as  a 
trust  to  our  fraternity,  and  the  j)roper  reverence  for  it  is  poured  out 
continually  through  the  influence  of  our  hallowed  bonds. 

For  every  country  that  influence  is  silently  wholesome.  In 
lands  where  "the  spirit  of  society  doe.3  not  recognize  sufficiently  the 
worth  of  man,  but  pays  too  much  homage  to  rank  and  name,  our 
Order  quietly  fosters  the  principle  of  the  equality  of  privilege  and 
lesponsibiliLy  under  the  laws  of  everlasting  justice;  and,  without 
being  revolutionary,  it  upholds  the  honor  of  human  nature,  and 
patiently  rebukes  desx^otic  arrogance  and  aristocratic  scorn.  In 
our  own  country,  its  service  is  of  a  difi'erent  kind.  We  need  more 
respect  for  authority;  less  self-will;  a  deep  sense  of  the  sacredness 
of  law,  and  education  in  the  habits,  manners,  and  feeUng  of  defer- 


216  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

ence  and  loyalty.  The  rupture  of  our  National  Unity,  for  a  time, 
with  its  tremendous  costs  in  treasure,  blood  and  agony,  is  in  part 
the  revelation,  in  part  the  penalty,  in  part,  perhaps,  through  the 
severe  benelicence  of  God,  the  cure  of  our  chronic  insubordination 
of  character  to  the  authority  and  sanctity  of  high  principles,  which 
has  unfitted  us,  all  over  the  land,  to  handle  the  sacred  responsibili- 
ties and  delicate  trusts  of  imperial  statesmanship  and  continental 
government.  Whatever  will  teach  our  people  reverence,  decorum, 
respect  for  others  in  the  utterance  and  defence  of  opinion,  sub- 
mission to  constituted  authority  with  dignity  and  grace,  will  be 
medicine  for  our  trouble,  and  will  prepare  for  us  a  better  future.  I 
believe  that  the  Order  of  Masonry,  the  quiet  efficiency  of  its  or- 
ganism, the  regard  for  forms  it  fosters,  the  love  of  order  it  induces 
and  deepens,  the  graceful  habits  of  submission  it  educates,  and  the 
sacredness  it  pours  around  organic  law  and  the  seats  of  authority, 
are  a  prominent  portion  of  the  bonds  of  civilization  in  our  country, 
and  an  immense  blessing  when  we  consider  our  natural  perils. 

Brethren,  let  us  cherish  the  duties  and  trusts  of  our  Fraternity 
for  this  good  influence  that  it  so  naturally  and  liberally  expends. 
Let  us  resolve  as  part  of  our  duty  to  the  Creator,  the  source  of  or- 
der and  law,  to  drink  more  deeply  of  the  springs  within  our  enclos- 
ure, whose  issue  is  healing  and  reviving.  In  the  maintenance  of 
the  bond  and  customs  of  our  Order  is  the  pledge  of  our  prosperity,  as 
well  as  the  assurance  of  our  service.  Order  has  limits.  Let  us  con- 
tinue to  guard  sacredly  our  limits;  to  suffer  no  transgression  of 
them.  What  a  power  is  represented  in  the  men  who  have  gathered 
within  this  temple,  during  the  present  week,  to  superintend  our 
general  interests  and  interpret  and  apply  our  law  !  What  harmony 
has  prevailed  here,  what  decorum  of  speech,  what  promj)tness  in 
duty,  what  efficiency  in  j^rotecting  and  guarding  the  common  good ! 
A  visitor  from  outside  our  fellowship,  suddenly  brought  in  here  to 
look,  for  a  moment,  at  the  representative  men  thus  gathered  from 
all  sections  of  our  State  domain,  and  to  observe,  by  one  glance, 
the  quiet  power  embodied  in  the  assembly,  might  imagine,  if  sud- 
denly taken  out  again,  that  there  could  be  something  perilous  to  the 
i:)ublic  welfare  in  the  association,  by  secret  ties,  of  so  many  men  of 
such  varied  abilit}^  working  in  seclusion  from  public  criticism  and 
without  passion.  He  would  feel  secure  again  by  knowing  that  it  is 
only  by  keeping  rigidly  to  the  work  of  fostering  the  interests  of  the 
Order,  that  the  dignity,  the  calm,  the  freedom  from  passion,  the  effic- 
iency, are  manifest  or  possible.  Let  any  other  question  be  intruded 
here,  and  there  could  be  no  detriment  to  public  interests;  for  our 
harmony  would  break.  Volcanic  flame  and  blackness  would  burst 
through  the  lofty  and  snowy  peace.  By  keeping  within  our  limits 
alone  are  we  prosperous  and  orderly;  and  within  our  limits  our  pros- 
perity is  the  welfare  of  the  community,  the  good  of  the  State,  the 
strengthening  of  civilization.  Eejoice,  brethren,  in  your  privilege; 
wall  off  from  intrusion  the  garden  of  order  you  have  received;  and 
guard  the  book  of  your  Constitution  with  the  Tyler's  sword. 

Organization  and  Order!     In  preserving  these,  we  are  in  har- 


THOMAS   STARR   KING.  217 

mony  with  the  will  and  work  of  the  Sovereign  Architect,  published 
in  the  harmony,  dignity,  and  peace  of  nature.  And  one  other  word 
must  be  spoken,  so  familiar,  so  precious,  to  the  Masonic  ear  and 
heart.  You  anticipate  what  it  is — Char  if  y.  In  nature,  which  speaks 
the  wisdom  and  character  of  the  Invisible  Spirit,  organization  is 
not  for  the  sake  of  Avisdom  and  skill  chiefly — order  is  not  for  the 
sake  of  law  and  obedience  chiefly — but  all  for  the  sake  of  Charity. 
There  is  harmony  and  stability  that  there  may  be  breadth  of  boun- 
ty, constanc}^  in  giving  wherever  there  is  need.  Within  every  dis- 
trict of  nature  there  is  beneficence  to  all  the  need  within  that 
district,  and  then  a  pouring  out  of  alms  into  a  general  fund  of  boun- 
ty and  cheer. 

Every  mountain  upholds  and  supports  the  herbage  on  its  slopes, 
and  sends  off  rills  to  carr^'  down  soil  to  the  vales  and  plains,  while 
they  feed  herbage  there.  You  cannot  find  a  tree,  or  plant,  or  flower, 
that  lives  for  itself.  The  animal  world  breathes  out  gases  for  the 
vegetable  kingdom,  and  then  the  vegetable  world  exhales  or  stores 
up  some  elements  essential  to  animal  health  and  vigor.  The  car- 
bonic acid  we  breathe  out  here,  and  which  is  poison  to  us,  blown 
eastward  by  our  west  winds,  may  be  greedily  taken  up,  a  few  days 
hence,  by  vineyards  on  the  slopes  of  the  Sierra,  and  returned  to  us 
in  the  sweetness  of  the  grape.  The  Equator  "sends  greeting"  to 
the  Arctic  zone  by  the  warm  Gulf  stream  that  flows  near  the  Polar 
coasts  to  soften  their  winds.  The  Poles  return  a  colder  stream  and 
add  an  embassy  of  icebergs,  too,  to  temper  the  fierce  heats.  Sel- 
fishness is  condemned  by  the  still  harmonies  of  the  creation.  Per- 
fect order  issues  out  of  interwoven  service. 

Do  we  ever  get  tired  of  the  toils  and  tax  of  charity  ?  Suppose 
the  sun  did.  What  does  he  receive  in  homage  or  obedience  from  the 
orbs  that  swing  round  him,  in  comparison  with  what  he  gives — all 
his  light,  all  his  heat,  all  his  vitality  for  the  blessing  of  fourscore 
worlds  ?  Shall  we  complain  of  the  demand  upon  our  treasuries,  or 
our  private  purses,  for  the  sacred  funds  of  the  Masonic  Board-  of 
Eelief  ?  What  if  the  sea  grumbled  at  the  assessment  which  the 
mighty  sun — the  Most  Worshipful  Grand  Master  of  the  system — 
levies  on  his  substance  !  Every  day  the  sun  touches  its  stores  with 
its  wand  of  light  and  says,  give,  give.  And  it  obeys.  Evaporation 
is  its  tax  constantly  demanded,  constantly  given.  Remember, 
brethren,  that  every  cloud  you  see,  whether  stretched  in  a  beautiful 
bar  across  the  east  at  sunrise,  or  hanging  in  pomp  over  the  gorgeous 
pavilion  of  the  retiring  day,  is  part  of  the  contribution  for  the 
general  relief  of  nature  assessed  by  the  lordly  sun.  The  water 
which  the  ocean  keeps  is  salt.  Pour  a  bucket  of  it  on  a  hill  of  corn, 
or  a  garden  bed,  and  it  kills  it.  The  water  which  the  ocean  gives 
is  fresh,  and  descends  in  blessing,  after  it  rides  in  beauty  or  majesty 
on  the  viewless  couriers  of  the  air.  Nature  tells  us  that  to  "give  is 
to  live." 

Society  is  struggling  up  to  reach  the  order  which  nature  thus 
indicates.  Civilization  is  yet  in  its  infancy.  There  is  no  town,  no 
village  of  Christendom  yet,  where  the  bounty  of  nature  to  all  the 


'ufi7Eb.,:;tt; 

osr 


218  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

needy  is  fulfilled.  Let  us  be  grateful,  brethren,  that  within  our 
fellowship,  charity  is  organized,  as  well  as  law  and  peace.  Our 
treasury  has  no  avarice  in  it.  The  oil  poured  upon  our  head  flows 
to  the  end  of  the  beard  and  the  garment's  hem. 

How  good  and  how  precious  it  is  for  brethren  to  dwell  in  such 
unity  !  May  it  continue,  brothers,  and  widen  through  our  fidelity 
and  service  and  beneficence  !  God  preserve  our  organization,  guard 
our  order,  inspire  our  beneficence,  and  grant  that,  a  centuiy  hence, 
our  successors  may  meet  here  to  enjoy  in  a  larger  fellowship  the 
result  of  our  faithfulness,  and  with  a  Nation  not  sundered,  but  pre- 
sided over  by  one  Grand  Master,  heir  of  the  virtues,  the  hope,  and 
the  blessing  of  Washington  ! 


CHARLES  E.  DE LONG 

,pY    THE    pDITOR 


THIS  popular  favorite  of  the  Silver  State  was  born  at 
Beekmansville,  Dutchess  county,  N'ew  York,  August 
13,  1832.  His  ancestors  arrived  in  America  from  France 
about  the  year  1780.  It  was  his  father's  wish  (himself 
a  farmer)  that  he  should  follow  the  noble  pursuits  of 
husbandr}^;  accordingly,  Charles  worked  upon  his  father's 
farm  until  his  boyhood  had  almost  passed,  and  he  began 
to  think  and  act  for  himself.  He  received  a  common 
school  education.  Before  he  had  completed  his  studies, 
or  prepared  himself  for  any  profession  or  trade,  he  de- 
termined to  strike  for  an  easily  acquired  fortune  in  the 
far  West. 

.  Though  yet  a  boy,  unacquainted  with  the  world,  un- 
accustomed even  to  the  harsh  accents  of  a  stranger's 
voice,  the  love  of  adventure — natural  attribute  of  youth — 
was  so  strong  in  his  breast,  that  the  exciting  reports  from 
the  Pacific  shores  were  sufficient  to  persuade  him  away 
from  the  old  homestead,  and  tempt  him  to  new  and 
distant  regions. 

Mr.  DeLong  arrived  in  California  June  5,  1850,  and 
settled  in  Yuba  county;  which  county,  in  after  years, 
honored  him  with  many  trusts,  and  where  he  remained 
until  his  final  departure  from  the  State,  in  1863. 

Immediately  after  his  arrival  in  Yuba  county,  the 
young  man,  then  only  eighteen  years  of  age,  went  reso- 


220  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

lutely  to  work.  He  was  no  stranger  to  manual  exertion : 
his  father  had  taught  him  the  true  nobility  of  labor. 
For  years  he  followed  the  fortunes  of  mining  life :  being 
not  only  young,  but  of  diminutive  stature,  his  childish 
form  w^as  daily  seen  bending  in  arduous  toil. 

From  1850  to  1856,  Mr.  DeLong  engaged  in  a  variety 
of  occupations.  As  the  writer  has  heard  him  say,  in 
conversation  among  his  friends,  ^'I  followed  mining, 
store-keeping,  bar-tending,  and  almost  everything  else, 
for  a  livelihood,  until,  in  1856,  having  failed  in  a  mer- 
cantile business  I  was  engaged  in  at  Young's  Hill,  Yuba 
county,  California,  I  turned  my  attention  to  the  study 
and  practice  of  the  law." 

Mr.  DeLong  did  not  attend  any  law  lectures  or  law- 
school,  for  such  evidences  of  civilization  were  lacking  in 
his  section  of  the  country.  He  studied  in  the  woods; 
and  being  of  quick  perception,  and  possessed  of  a  natural 
aptitude  for  the  ^'accumulating  science,"  he  progressed 
rapidly,  and  when  he  thought  he  could  pass  a  creditable 
examination,  he  presented  himself  before  the  District 
Court  of  Yuba  county,  and  was  admitted  to  practice  as 
an  attorney  and  counselor-at-law.  He  then  opened  a 
law  office  in  Marysville,  the  principal  town  in  northern 
California,  and  entered  upon  the  practice  at  a  time  when 
litigation  was  rife,  and  when  the  Marysville  bar  embraced 
many  of  the  first  legal  minds  of  the  State — Field,  Mit- 
chell, McQuade,  Barbour,  Reardon,  Lindley,  and  others. 

In  the  fall  of  1857,  Mr.  DeLong  was  elected  to  the 
lower  branch  of  the  State  Legislature,  from  Yuba  county, 
on  the  Democratic  ticket.  He  took  his  seat  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  session,  in  January,  1858.  During  the 
session  of  the  Legislature  in  that  year,  he  appeared  before 
the  Supreme  Court  of  California,  sitting  at  Sacramento, 
and  was  admitted  to  practice  in  all  the  courts  of  the  State. 
The  next  year,  he  was  reelected  to  the  Assembly,  on  the 
Anti-Leconipton  Democratic  ticket — the  Legislature  con- 
vening on  the  first  Monday  of  January,  1859.  In  the  fall 
of  1859,  he  was  nominated  by  the  Douglas  Democrats  for 
State  Senator,  for  the  term  commencing  in  January,  1860, 
but  was  defeated  by  Hon.  H.  P.  Watkins.     In  the  fall  of 


CHARLES   E.    DE  LONG.  221 

the  latter  year,  he  was  again  nominated  for  the  State 
Senate  by  the  same  party,  and  was  elected,  defeating 
Hon.  X.  E.  Whitesides,  formerly  Speaker  of  the  Assem- 
bly, and  once  his  colleague  in  that  body. 

Mr.  DeLong  held  this  position  two  years.  He  entered 
the  Senate  on  the  first  Monday  in  January,  1861,  and,  on 
the  18th  day  of  that  month,  introduced  into  the  Senate 
resolutions  in  regard  to  the  then  troubled  state  of  the 
Union. 

These  resolutions  were  the  first  of  a  great  many  of 
similar  nature,  sustaining  the  Federal  Government,  re- 
pudiating the  suggestion  of  a  Pacific  Republic,  and 
urging  coercion  on  the  part  of  the  general  government 
against  the  seceding  States.  Messrs.  Edgerton,  Watson, 
Burbank,  and  others,  having  offered  substitutes,  or  addi- 
tional resolutions,  upon  the  subject,  the  entire  file  was 
referred  to  the  Committee  on  Federal  Relations.  Upon 
the  report  of  that  committee,  a  lengthy  and  spirited 
debate  ensued,  in  which  Mr.  DeLong  joined.  His  speech 
upon  the  occasion  was  pronounced  by  the  leading  news- 
paper of  the  State,  ''well-considered  and  forcible;"  and, 
for  argumentative  power  and  eloquence,  was  equalled 
only  by  the  brilliant  efforts  of  Edgerton  and  Thornton. 

On  the  23d  of  the  same  month,  Mr.  DeLong  presented 
in  the  Senate  a  petition  from  a  large  number  of  his  con- 
stituents, praying  that  the  resolutions  of  censure  against 
Senator  Broderick  (for  refusing  to  resign,  in  obedience 
to  the  request  of  a  previous  Legislature)  be  expunged 
from  the  journals  of  the  two  houses. 

During  his  term  as  a  senator,  the  "  Corporation  Act" 
and  other  leading  measures  received  Mr.  DeLong' s  serious 
attention.  The  journals  of  the  Senate  and  the  files  of 
the  Sacramento  Union  will  attest  his  industry  and  his  use- 
fulness as  a  legislator. 

In  the  fall  of  1862,  Mr.  DeLong  was  again  nominated 
by  his  party  as  a  candidate  for  the  State  Senate,  but  was 
defeated,  and  in  May,  1863,  removed  to  "Washoe."  The 
great  flood  of  the  previous  year  had  swept  over  the  entire 
valley  of  the  Sacramento,  and  erected  everywhere  its 
mournful  monuments.    The  practice  of  law  in  Marysville 


222  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

had  declined  to  barrenness,  and  business  of  all  kinds  in 
that  once  proud,  thrifty,  and  beautiful  city,  was  utterly 
stagnant.  The  afficted  populace  were  fleeing  from  the 
wide-spread  desolation,  and  seeking  new  homes  and  fresh 
fields  of  enterprise.  A  silver  star  was  rising  in  the  east, 
whose  happy  light  refreshed  the  dejected  multitudes. 
Washoe  was  the  word  of  hope  and  promise.  The  fab- 
ulous wealth  of  the  newly-discovered  mines,  and  the 
conflicting  interests  of  the  claim.ants,  had  called  into 
being  a  vast  world  of  litigation,  such  as  no  diligent  votary 
of  law  had  ever  dreamed  of  beholding.  The  enormous 
fees  received  by  the  pioneer  lawyers  of  Washoe  had  ex- 
cited the  wonder  and  cupidity  of  attorneys  throughout 
California,  and  towards  the  beginning  of  the  year  1864, 
the  bar  of  Virginia  city  numbered  about  one  hundred 
practitioners.  Mr.  DeLong  arrived  in  that  place  before 
the  lawyers'  silver  harvest  had  been  fully  gathered,  and 
soon  formed  a  partnership  with  Mr.  D.  W.  Perley,  now  a 
leading  member  of  the  profession  at  White  Pine.  He 
found  upon  his  arrival  that  he  had  been  preceded  by 
many  of  his  friends  and  former  constituents,  citizens  of 
Yuba  county.  Being  an  old  miner,  he  was  at  home  amid 
the  restless  mass  around  him.  His  experience  as  a  miner 
and  as  a  lawyer,  his  close  application  to  business,  his 
fidelity  to  his  clients,  soon  gave  him  a  prominent  place 
and  a  lucrative  practice  at  the  Virginia  bar. 

In  1864,  Mr.  DeLong  was  elected  a  member  (from 
Storey  county)  of  the  Constitutional  Convention  which 
framed  the  present  Constitution  of  Nevada.  At  the 
election  of  United  States  senators  in  that  year,  he  was  a 
prominent  candidate  for  that  high  position.  The  first 
ballot  stood:  Stewart,  32;  DeLong,  24;  Nye,  23.  On 
the  next  day,  Messrs.  Stewart  and  Nye  were  chosen. 
Mr.  DeLong  bore  his  defeat  with  patience,  and  continued 
his  practice  in  Virginia  city. 

In  1865,  the  law-firm  of  Perley  &  DeLong  was  dis- 
solved, the  latter  entering  into  partnership  with  Judge 
Lewis  Aldrich,  formerly  of  San  Francisco. 

In  January,  1868,  Mr.  DeLong  was  again  brought 
forward  as  a  candidate  for  the  United   States  Senate. 


CHARLES   E.    BELONG.  223 

Messrs.  Nj^e,  Winters,  and  Fitch,  were  also  candidates. 
Twenty-nine  votes  were  necessary  to  elect,  and  Mr. 
DeLong  received  twenty-seven:  then,  by  the  withdrawal 
of  Messrs.  Winters  and  Fitch  in  favor  of  Gov.  Nye,  the 
latter  was  elected. 

In  the  convention  w^hich  nominated  Gen.  Grant  for 
the  Presidency,  Mr.  DeLong  was  chairman  of  the  Nevada 
delegation,  and  was  placed  on  the  Committee  on  Platform 
and  Resolutions.  He  was  one  of  the  sub-committee  of 
six  that  drafted  the  platform  of  the  Union  Republican 
party  of  1868.  He  is  a  member  of  the  National  Repub- 
lican Committee,  and  one  of  the  executive  committee 
from  the  Pacific  coast.  He  has  also  for  several  years 
been  chairman  of  the  Republican  State  Central  Commit- 
tee of  Nevada,  holding  that  position  until  shortly  before 
his  departure  for  Japan  as  Minister  Resident  of  the  United 
States.  He  took  an  active  part  in  the  election  of  Gen. 
Grant,  having  been  chosen  one  of  the  presidential  electors 
of  the  State  of  Nevada,  and  afterwards,  by  his  associates, 
selected  as  messenger  to  carry  the  vote  of  the  State  to 
Washington. 

In  the  fall  of  1868,  Mr.  DeLong  removed  to  the  new 
mining  region  of  White  Pine,  establishing  himself  at 
Treasure  City,  in  partnership  with  Judge  Lewis  Aldrich, 
Hon.  J.  S.  Slauson,  and  Mr.  Thomas  Wren. 

Gen.  Grant,  shortly  after  his  inauguration  as  Presi- 
dent, in  1869,  tendered  to  our  subject  the  appointment 
of  Minister  Resident  of  the  United  States  at  Japan. 
The  appointment  being  confirmed  by  the  United  States 
Senate,  was  accepted  by  Mr.  DeLong,  who,  after  devoting 
several  months  to  the  proper  arrangement  of  his  business 
affairs,  departed  upon  his  mission  in  September,  1869, 
accompanied  by  his  family. 

In  1862,  Mr.  DeLong  married  Miss  Elida  F.  Yineyard, 
yoimgest  daughter  of  Col.  James  F.  Yineyard,  then  a 
senator  from  Los  Angeles,  by  whom  he  has  several  living 
children. 

Mr.  DeLong  is  an  indefatigable  student,  and  a  close 
reader  not  only  of  legal  but  poetic  and  miscellaneous 
writers.     He  is  a  man  of  genial  temper,  frank  in  his 


224  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

manners,  fond  of  humor,  and  gifted  with  the  rare  faculty 
of  attaching  to  himself  sincere  friends  wherever  he  goes. 
His  tastes  and  active  temperament  especially  fit  him  for 
the  practice  of  his  profession  in  a  mining  community. 
His  fame  as  a  lawyer  is  firmly  established  in  iNevada. 
He  is  a  graceful  speaker,  is  decidedly  entertaining  in 
conversation,  and  delights  to  tell  or  listen  to  an 
anecdote. 

In  Mr.  DeLong's  case,  success  has  been  the  test  of 
merit.  He  has  won  fortune  and  position  by  solitary, 
unaided  study  and  effort.  He  came  to  California  a  boy, 
vdthout  friends,  means,  or  experience.  By  patient  in- 
dustry, and  the  pursuit  of  an  honest,  straightforward 
course,  he  has  battled  with  the  disadvantages  and  checks 
of  youth,  poverty,  and  inexperience,  and  conquered 
them.  Few  men  have  overcome  greater  obstacles — 
none  are  more  worthy  of  achieved  success. 


MARIANO  GUADALUPE  VALLEJO. 

By   pHAS.     p.     J^CKETT. 


BEFORE  proceeding  to  sketch  a  condensed  biography 
of  the  most  distinguished  of  living  Hispano- 
Californians,  a  short  allusion  to  his  ancestry  will  be 
of  interest,  as  well  as  appropriate  to  the  subject.  The 
Vallojo  family — all  claiming  relationship — occupied  for 
many  generations  a  most  honorable  position  in  Spain ; 
and  the  branches  of  it  which  immigrated  to  America 
were  alike  distinguished,  chiefly,  however,  as  church 
dignitaries  of  the  Jesuit  Order.  A  genealogical  state- 
ment or  table  of  these  latter  was  filed  in  1806  in  the 
Spanish  archives  of  California.  One  of  the  name — Don 
Alonzo  Yallejo — commanded  the  troops  on  board  the 
vessel  in  which  the  royal  commissioner,  Bobadillo,  came 
over  to  take  back  Columbus  a  prisoner  to  Spain. 
Another  was  with  Cortez  in  making  the  conquest  of 
Mexico,  and  afterwards  became  Governor  of  the  province 
of  Panuco.  The  grand-parents  of  the  subject  of  our 
history  came  from  the  province  of  Burgos,  near  the  city 
of  Bilbao,  in  the  northern  part  of  Spain,  sometime  during 
the  early  portion  of  the  last  century,  and  settled  per- 
manently in  Gaudalajara,  Mexico,  where  Don  Ignacio 
Yallejo,  his  father,  was  born.  Like  the  most  of  the 
members  of  the  family  (including  a  number  of  the 
females)  Don  Ignacio  was  educated  for  holy  orders;  but 
taking  a  dislike  to  that  sober  life,  and  his  youthful  ima- 
15 


226  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

gination  being  fired  with  the  spirit  of  adventure,  then  so 
animating  the  Castilian  stock,  he  managed  to  quarrel 
with  the  officiating  clergyman  upon  the  day  of  his  or- 
dination— threw  off,  in  simulated  anger,  his  sacerdotal 
vestments,  and  fled  for  refuge  to  the  royal  standard. 
The  company  he  joined  was  upon  the  eve  of  departing 
northward  upon  that  famous  propagandizing  and  ex- 
ploring expedition  which  accompanied  the  historically 
renowned  Father  Junipero  Serro — founder  of  the  Cali- 
fornia Missions,  and  discoverer  of  the  Bay  of  San  Fran- 
cisco. Landing  with  him  at  San  Diego  in  1769,  Don 
Ignacio  traveled,  in  company  with  that  daring  and 
zealous  missionary  and  other  members  of  the  party,  over 
a  large  portion  of  the  country,  soon  thereafter  going  as 
far  north  as  the  valley  of  Petaluma.  As  military  com- 
missioner and  engineer,  he  was  employed  for  a  number 
of  years  in  planning  and  superintending  the  building  of 
fortifications,  laying  out  the  various  towns  of  the  terri- 
tory, and  in  directing  the  construction  of  irrigating  canals 
and  the  waterworks  of  the  Missions. 

General  M.  G.  Yallejo  was  born  in  Monterey,  upper 
California,  July,  1808,  being  the  eighth  of  thirteen  child- 
ren. He  was  educated  at  the  college  there,  and  entered 
the  military  service  at  the  age  of  sixteen,  as  a  cadet  and 
private  secretary  to  Governor  Arguello.  Being  rapidly 
promoted,  he  reached  the  rank  of  Brigadier- General  in 
1840.  In  1829,  as  Lieutenant  commanding,  he  was 
placed  in  charge  of  the  Korthern  Department,  which  in- 
cluded all  the  country  to  the  north  of  Santa  Cruz,  having 
his  headquarters  at  the  Presidio  of  San  Francisco;  in 
which  capacity  he  remained  until  1837,  exercising,  until 
1835,  both  civil  and  military  functions  for  the  section 
north  of  San  Jose,  when,  at  his  own  suggestion,  Governor 
Figueroa  ordered  an  election  of  civil  officers  for  the 
Partido  or  District  of  San  Francisco,  whose  seat  of  gov- 
ernment or  cabem  should  be  at  the  Mission  of  Dolores; 
which  was  duly  carried  into  execution,  and  dates  the 
foundation  of  the  first  organization  of  the  character  at 
such  important  point. 

In  the  fall  of  1829,  soon  after  assuming  command  of 


MARIANO   GUADALUPi<J  YALLEJO.  227 

his  department,  a  man  by  the  name  of  Solis  inaugurated 
a  revolutionary  movement  against  Gov.  Echandea,  chiefly 
because  the  latter  preferred  to  reside  at  San  Diego, 
instead  of  at  the  capital,  Monterey.  Yallejo  was  im- 
portuned to  join  the  revolutionists,  and  upon  refusing, 
was  confined  in  the  calaboose  at  Monterey,  from  which 
he  shortly  managed  to  escape  by  sea:  joined  the  Gover- 
nor's forces  at  San  Diego,  and  met  the  insurgents  near 
Santa  Barbara,  where  Solis  was  defeated. 

In  1831,  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Territorial 
Deputation.  At  this  period,  Victoria  was  Governor,  and 
had  rendered  himself  obnoxious  to  the  Californians  by 
his  arbitrary  and  cruel  conduct.  Yallejo  having  been 
selected  by  his  fellow-deputies  to  prepare  and  present 
articles  of  impeachment  against  his  Excellency,  the  lat- 
ter, during  a  recess  of  the  session,  strove,  by  tendering 
him  a  superior  commission  and  making  other  friendly 
overtures,  to  quash  the  indictment;  but  finding  the 
young  Lieutenant  too  true  to  his  California  countrymen, 
to  accede  to  his  propositions,  he  determined  to  arrest 
him  and  the  others  engaged  in  the  proceedings.  This 
precipitated  a  revolution  in  which  Victoria  was  defeated 
in  a  battle  fought  at  the  Cauenga  Pass,  near  Los  Angeles ; 
after  which,  the  Governor  was  sent  out  of  the  country  in 
an  American  vessel  then  lying  in  the  port  of  San  Diego. 

In  1832,  he  was  married  to  Francisca  Benicia  Carrillos, 
by  whom  he  has  had  seventeen  children — ten  now  living, 
five  of  them  married — General  John  B.  Frisbie,  proprietor 
of  the  City  of  Vallejo,  etc.,  being  his  eldest  son-in-law. 
In  1834,  he  was,  with  Bandini,  elected  a  delegate  to  the 
Mexican  Congress,  but  did  not  attend. 

In  1836,  Governor  Chico  got  by  the  ears  with  the 
leading  Californians ;  was  deposed  by  them,  and  sent  from 
the  country  in  an  American  vessel.  Just  before  leaving, 
he  appointed  Gutierez  his  provisional  successor,  which 
arrangement  was  acceded  to  by  the  revolutionists.  But 
Gutierez,  proceeding  to  carry  into  execution  the  ob- 
jectionable measures  of  Chico,  the  whole  country  arose 
in  opposition,  proclaimed  Vallejo  General-in-Chief  and 
revolutionary  Governor  ad  interim,  who  immediately  con- 


228  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

vened  the  Territorial  Deputation  and  turned  over  the 
reins  of  civil  government  to  Alvarado,  President  of  that 
body;  retaining,  however,  the  military  and,  de  facto ^  all 
power  in  his  own  hands.  In  1838,  the  supreme  govern- 
ment of  Mexico  confirmed  these  revolutionary  acts  of 
the  jealous,  belligerant,  and  semi-independant  Califor- 
nians;  and  sent  out  as  Governor,  Micheltoreno,  clothed 
with  extraordinary  prerogatives — being  invested  with 
the  full  powers  of  the  central  government.  In  the  ex- 
ercise of  these,  he  appointed  Yallejo  military  commander 
of  all  the  territory  lying  north  of  the  Santa  Inez  moun- 
tain, who  now  had  fixed  his  headquarters  at  Sonoma, 
where  he  has  ever  since  resided. 

In  1844-5,  occurred  the  last  revolution  of  the  Cali- 
fornians  among  themselves,  which  ended  in  expelling 
Governor  Micheltoreno  from  the  country.  Yallejo  was 
the  leading  person  in  secretly  planning  the  programme 
and  having  the  pronunciamentos  issued  to  this  effect. 
Foreseeing  the  result,  he  wrote  to  Capt.  John  A.  Sutter, 
who  was  organizing  the  foreign  residents  in  the  northern 
section  and  a  body  of  Sacramento  Indians,  to  go  to  the 
assistance  of  the  Governor,  strongly  advising  him  not  to 
take  any  part  in  the  affair.  At  the  same  time,  he  ad- 
dressed a  communication  to  Micheltoreno,  adjuring  him 
to  send  back  immediately  the  obnoxious  troops  and 
officers  he  had  brought  from  Mexico  with  him,  and  whose 
characters  and  conduct  solely  had  arrayed  the  Califor- 
nians  against  him.  But  his  advice  was  unheeded  by 
both;  and  upon  the  surrender  of  Micheltoreno,  Sutter 
came  near  losing  his  life,  which  was  only  saved  by  the 
joint  interposition  of  the  foreigners  enlisted  upon  either 
side.  Vallejo,  during  the  preparation  for  the  conflict, 
was  placed  in  a  very  delicate  and  dangerous  position. 
Being  ordered  by  the  Governor  to  join  him  with  the 
forces  under  his  command,  he  refused;  alleging  as  a 
reason,  that  he  did  not  wish  to  make  war  upon  his 
friends  and  relations — Alvarado  and  Castro,  the  two 
chief  leaders  of  the  revolutionists,  being  his  nephews. 
The  troops  stationed  at  Sonoma  and  San  Francisco  were, 
through  the  agency  of  Lieut.  Pico,  Don  Jasper  O'Farrell, 


MARIANO   GUADALUPE   VALLEJO.  229 

Capt.  Sutter,  and  others,  induced  to  desert  and  join  the 
contingent  forces  of  Sutter,  then  upon  the  march  to 
cooperate  with  those  of  Micheltoreno.  Not  wishing  to 
take  issue  with  his  American  and  other  foreign -born 
neighbors,  Yallejo  remained  quietly  at  home,  awaiting 
the  termination  of  the  contest.  And  here,  appropriately, 
may  be  related  the  real  or  paramount  inducement  for 
such  conduct  upon  his  part. 

After  the  raising  of  the  American  flag  at  Monterey 
in  1842,  by  Commodore  Jones,  Yallejo  became  impressed 
with  the  conviction  that  the  time  was  near  at  hand  for 
what  he  deemed  to  be  the  inevitable  destiny  of  Cali- 
fornia— annexation  to  the  United  States;  and  thence- 
forward was  shaping  his  actions  so  as  to  conform  to  that 
which  he  was  willing  should  come  to  pass  as  soon  as 
possible.  In  evidence  of  this,  during  the  month  of 
March,  1846,  at  the  call  of  Pio  Pico — who,  as  President 
of  the  Assembly,  had  assumed  the  Governorship  upon 
the  expulsion  of  Micheltoreno — a  convention  of  the 
leading  citizens  assembled  at  Santa  Barbara,  to  take  into 
consideration  the  future  of  California.  The  impression 
prevailed  generally  that  its  loose  connection  with  Mexico 
was  about  to  be  severed;  and  the  important  question 
arose,  ''What  will  then  become  of  us?"  There  were 
three  parties  in  this  body:  one  (and  the  strongest)  favor- 
ing an  English  Protectorate.  The  next  strongest  ad- 
vocated the  erection  of  an  independent  Republic,  to  be 
maintained  under  all  contingencies;  whilst  the  third — at 
the  head  of  which  was  Vallejo — favored  the  latter  project 
only  so  far  as  a  temporary  arrangement  for  the  purpose 
of  negotiating  their  transfer  into  the  American  Union. 
Through  his  machinations,  the  meeting  at  Santa  Barbara, 
where  the  English  party  prevailed,  was  unable  to  obtain 
a  quorum,  and  so  adjourned  to  Monterey.  Here  the 
friends  of  the  various  projects  met  and  earnestly  dis- 
cussed this  weighty  question — the  French  Consul  also 
approaching  various  members  to  propose  a  French  Pro- 
tectorate, provided  they  would  call  upon  his  government 
so  to  act.  The  leading  part  in  the  discussion  was  taken 
by  Vallejo.     He  warmly,  logically,  and  ably  laid  before 


230  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

the  body  his  views  upon  the  subject.  He  said  they  all 
agreed  that  Mexico  must  part  with  California ;  and  it  was 
impossible  for  them  to  maintain  an  independent  status, 
since  both  the  United  States  and  Great  Britain  had  fully 
manifested  the  intent  to  seize  upon  the  country  at  a  very^ 
early  period.  The  only  question,  therefore,  for  them  to 
decide  and  act  upon  was,  into  the  arms  of  which  of  these 
two  powerful  nations  they  should  conclude  to  throw 
themselves.  For  his  part,  laying  aside  his  individual 
predilection — which  had  been  often  expressed — he  ad- 
vised them  to  make  a  virtue  of  necessity,  by  at  once 
taking  steps  towards  opening  negotiations  with  a  view  to 
transferring  themselves  to  the  former.  He  stated  that 
Commodore  Jones  had  assured  him  in  1842  that  it  was  a 
foregone  conclusion  of  his  country  to  have  California 
soon  at  all  hazards ;  and  that  his  action  in  then  so  hastily 
raising  the  stars  and  stripes  upon  their  soil,  under  the 
impression  that  war  was  waging  between  the  two  coun- 
tries, was  in  accordance  with  secret  orders  to  checkmate 
any  such  movement  that  might  be  made  upon  the  part 
of  the  British  naval  commander.  Thomas  0.  Larkin, 
the  American  Consul,  residing  then  at  Monterey,  backed 
up  these  views  of  Yallejo,  by  assuring  the  members  of 
the  convention  that  so  firmly  resolved  was  his  govern- 
ment to  possess  California,  that  in  the  event  Great 
Britain  should  forestall  them  by  first  seizing  it,  or  by 
their  voluntarily  transferring  themselves  in  such  direc- 
tion, the  United  States  would  eventually  obtain  the  ter- 
ritory, even  though  at  the  cost  of  a  war  with  that  mighty 
power.  The  convention  came  to  no  definite  conclusion, 
resolving  to  adjourn  for  a  season  and  observe  the  turn 
of  affairs.  But  the  complicated  and  important  events  so 
suddenly  precipitated  upon  the  land  a  few  weeks  sub- 
sequently, prevented  any  further  consultation.  The  long 
existing  jealousy  between  the  northern  and  the  southern 
sections  of  the  territory  had  just  then  bred  anew  enough 
bad  blood  to  induce  General  Castro  to  organize  an  armed 
force  in  the  former,  and  Governor  Pico  in  the  latter,  to 
settle  the  feud  by  an  appeal  to  arms.  The  two  armies 
were  marching  to  the  scene  of  conflict,  and  about  meet- 


MARIANO    GUADALUPE   VALLEJO.  231 

ing  near  San  Luis  Obispo,  when  the  startling  news  arrived 
that  the  foreigners  had  raised  an  independent  banner 
(the  ^'Bear  Flag")  north  of  the  bay  of  San  Francisco; 
taken  Yallejo  and  other  chief  citizens  prisoners;  fought 
a  battle,  defeating  the  natives,  and  threatened  to  carry 
lire  and  sword  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of 
California,  in  retaliation  for  alleged  threats  made  by 
Castro  to  drive  them  all  from  the  country.  This  at  once 
brought  about  a  reconciliation  between  the  opposing 
parties,  and  a  resolve  to  join  their  forces  in  order  to  pro- 
ceed against  the  common  enemy.  But  very  soon  came 
the  still  more  startling  announcement  that  war  existed 
between  the  United  States  and  Mexico ;  that  the  fleet  of 
the  former  had  arrived  in  the  bay  of  Monterey  and  raised 
the  American  flag  ov^r  the  town;  that  Col.  Fremont  had 
got  back  from  the  mountains  in  Oregon,  whither  Castro 
had  but  recently  compelled  him  to  flee;  that  the  ''Bear 
Party"  had  hauled  down  their  flag,  joined  their  recruits 
with  Fremont,  and  that  the  command  (rapidly  augment- 
ing) was  on  the  march  to  cooperate  with  the  navy  in 
effecting  a  conquest  of  the  country.  Castro — now  at 
the  head  of  the  Californians,  though  in  sympathy  with 
the  British  party — was  aware  of  the  hopelessness  of 
further  opposition,  and  admitted  that  the  position  taken 
by  Yallejo  was  correct.  Encamping  in  the  vicinity  of 
Monterey,  he  sent  word  to  the  Commodore  that  he  was 
prepared  to  enter  into  negotiations  for  laying  down  his 
arms  and  surrendering  the  country.  But  being  somewhat 
cavalierly  and  most  impolitely  repulsed,  and  the  near 
approach  of  Fremont  preventing  a  renewal  of  any  over- 
tures, by  driving  him  farther  southw^ard,  then  followed 
the  two  wars  of  the  conquest — so  wholly  and  entirely 
uncalled  for,  so  expensive,  and  resulting  in  the  loss  of  a 
number  of  lives  upon  both  sides,  and  the  engendering  of 
much  bitter  feeling,  all  of  which  could  easily  have  been 
avoided,  but  for  the  extreme  ignorance  of  the  American 
commanders  as  to  the  proper  deference  and  conciliation 
to  be  extended  to  Castilian  pride  and  punctilio.  Yallejo 
remained  a  prisoner  for  a  number  of  weeks  at  Sutter's 


232        REPRESENTATIVE  MEN  OF  THE  PACIFIC. 

Fort  ill  the  Sacramento  valley,  when  he  was  set  at  liberty 
upon  parole  by  the  new  naval  commander. 

Under  the  new  regime^  and  especially  after  the  be- 
ginning of  the  great  influx  of  gold-seekers  to  the  Pacific 
shore,  in  1849,  Yallejo  assumed  a  very  prominent  posi- 
tion. He  was  appointed  by  Commodore  Stockton,  in 
January,  1847,  a  member  of  a  civil  body  titled  the  As- 
sembly, designed  to  frame  a  code  of  laws  for  the  tem- 
porary governance  of  the  territory.  But  the  grand 
imbroglio  between  Commodores  Stockton  and  Shubrick, 
General  Kearney,  and  Colonels  Mason  and  Fremont, 
happening  about  this  period,  prevented  the  meeting  of 
such  body.  As  an  illustration  of  the  complicated  state 
of  affairs  brought  about  by  their  jealousies  and  conflict 
of  authority,  that  even  the  famous  Fremont  court  martial, 
which  aftervfards  sat  in  Washington,  was  unable  to  un- 
ravel, Yallejo  received  three  communications  dated  upon 
the  same  day,  from  Stockton,  Kearney,  and  Fremont, 
respectively,  each  signing  himself  ^'  Governor  and  Com- 
mander-in-Chief of  California." 

Vallejo,  however,  acted  for  a  time  as  Indian  Agent 
north  of  the  Bay,  by  appointment  of  General  Kearney. 

Early  in  the  year  1849 were  inaugurated  those  ''Dis- 
trict Legislatures"  for  affording  some  sort  of  temporary 
civil  governments  for  the  country.  Ex-Governor  Boggs 
from  Missouri  and  General  Yallejo  took  the  leading  part 
in  organizing  this  movement  for  the  Sonoma  section, 
when,  on  motion  of  the  Governor,  and  to  save  the  labor 
and  expense  of  framing  a  new  code,  the  Missouri  statutes 
were  adopted  entire,  so  far  as  applicable — Boggs,  we 
believe,  then  possessing  the  only  copy  of  them  in  Cali- 
fornia. But  Governor-General  Riley's  proclamation  soon 
upset  these  independent  movements,  and  called  a  general 
convention  for  the  territory.  Yallejo  was  elected  a  mem- 
ber of  the  body,  which,  upon  assembling,  resolved  to 
form  a  State  Constitution.  The  following  year,  he  was 
elected  a  State  Senator,  and  whilst  a  member,  his  mag- 
nificently liberal  propositions  with  reference  to  locating 
the   permanent   seat   of    government   upon    his   Suscol 


MARIANO    GUADxyLUPE   YALLEJO.  233 

Ranclio,  at  the  site  of  the  present  city  of  Yallejo,  were 
accepted  by  the  Legislature  and  confirmed  by  a  vote  of 
the  people.  In  compliance  with  the  terms  of  the  agree- 
ment, he  erected  a  State  House  or  Capitol  and  various 
other  public  buildings,  as  well  as  expending  large  sums 
otherwise  in  connection  therewith;  expecting,  besides 
the  great  honor  of  the  business  (his  chief  incentive)  to 
reimburse  himself  from  the  sale  of  lots  in  the  new  city, 
and  the  rise  in  value  of  the  adjacent  lands.  The  Legis- 
lature twice  met  there,  but  the  hotel  accommodations 
not  being  esteemed  sufficient,  and  certain  very  strong  in- 
fluences being  brought  to  bear  to  induce  adjournment  to 
Sacramento,  the  place  was  finally  abandoned  as  a  capital, 
and  Vallejo  induced  to  cancel,  upon  his  part,  the  contract 
made  with  the  State,  at  a  loss,  as  he  alleges,  of  several 
hundreds  of  thousands  of  dollars.  And  to  this  heavy 
damage  and  the  unexpected  rejection  by  the  Supreme 
Court  of  the  United  States  of  his  title  to  that  most 
valuable  rancho,  may  be  chiefly  ascribed  the  downfall  of 
his  fortunes. 

In  January,  1847,  Yallejo  and  Dr.  Robert  Semple 
(subsequently  taking  in  T.  0.  Larkin  as  a  co-proprietor) 
laid  out  upon  the  same  rancho  the  town  site  of  Benicia, 
which  was  first  christened  Francisca,  after  the  first  name 
of  Sefiora  Vallejo;  but  the  title  of  Yerba  Buena  being 
soon  thereafter  officially  changed  to  that  of  San  Fran- 
cisco, the  similarity  of  the  two  induced  the  proprietors — 
after  an  angry  protest  by  Semple,  through  the  columns 
of  his  paper,  the  Californian^  against  such  action  upon 
the  part  of  the  Alcalde  at  Yerba  Buena — to  adopt  Benicia 
(Yenitia)  instead;  being  the  second  or  middle  name  of 
Mrs.  Yallejo. 

The  General  possesses- a  handsome  residence — "Lach- 
rymoe  Montis" — situated  in  the  edge  of  the  town  of 
Sonoma,  built  after  the  plan  of  Bonaparte's  villa  at  Bor- 
dentown,  IST.  J.,  but  is  unable  to  preserve  it  in  proper 
repair  for  the  lack  of  sufficient  income.  Sonoma  being 
selected  as  the  headquarters  of  the  United  States  army 
in  the  fall  of  1849,  his  commodious  mansion  upon  the 
Plaza,  fashioned  in  the  old  Hispano-Mexican  style,  was 


234  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

long  the  almost  homelike  resort  of  all  its  officers,  and 
where  many,  besides,  met  with  that  open-hearted  and 
frank  entertainment  characteristic  of  its  hospitable  pro- 
prietor. Being,  during  that  period,  a  gentleman  of  ample 
fortune — possessing  near  thirty  leagues  of  choice  land 
lying  immediately  around  the  northern  border  of  the 
bay  of  San  Francisco,  and  many  thousands  of  horses  and 
horned  cattle — he  dispensed  his  hospitality,  as  well  as 
rendered  much  assistance  to  the  newcomers,  with  a  pro- 
digal and  generous  hand.  In  1865,  he  made  his  first 
visit  to  the  East,  and  was  received  with  great  considera- 
tion in  Washington  by  his  old  army  and  navy  acquaint- 
ances, whom  he  met  there,  as  also  by  the  leading  officials 
of  the  government. 

As  Mayor  and  also  a  Councilman  of  his  home-town, 
he  sought  to  have  its  public  grounds  properly  ornamented 
and  improved,  proffering  to 'bear  the  larger  portion  of 
the  expense;  but  such  not  being  responded  to  by  the 
new  citizens,  his  plan  was  only  partially  carried  out.  He 
expended,  however,  large  sums  in  setting  out  vineyards 
and  fruit-trees  in  the  immediate  vicinity,  being  the  first 
to  start  vine-culture  and  wine-making  on  the  north  side 
of  the  bay.  For  several  years,  his  wines  and  brandies 
took  the  first  premium  at  the  State  Fairs,  and  at  the 
Mechanics'  Fairs  in  San  Francisco. 

Notwithstanding  his  vicissitudes  of  life — loss  of  for- 
tune, inability  to  keep  pace  with  the  progressive  ideas 
and  practices  of  Young  America,  and  the  many  harassing 
cares  besides — the  General  (now  over  sixty)  preserves 
ir  a  remarkable  manner  his  youthful  appearance  and 
activity.  This  may  be  attributed,  in  part,  to  a  well- 
developed  physique,  and  active,  outdoor  exercise  all  his 
days,  and  to  the  strictly  temperate  habits  he  has  con- 
stantly adhered  to,  rarely  partaking  of  wine  or  spirits, 
and  being  a  moderate  and  fastidious  eater.  In  character 
he  is  not  alone  a  pure-blooded  Spaniard  of  the  Hidalgo 
class,  but  true  to  many  of  the  leading  traits  and  like- 
nesses of  that  grandly  historic  race;  being  generous, 
hospitable,  high-spirited,  of  courtly  address  and  dis- 
tinguished  presence,  and  possessed  with   a   happy  ad- 


MARIANO    GUADALUPE   VALLEJO.  235 

mixture  of  dignified  pride  and  condescending  affability. 
Like  them,  in  general,  his  mind  dwells  much  in  the 
regions  of  romance;  is  somewhat  addicted  to  idealistic 
fancies — air-castle  building,  or  the  concoction  of  mag- 
nificent schemes  and  projects,  difficult  of  being,  or  never 
to  be,  realized.  He  is  likewise  addicted,  at  times,  to 
that  hyperbolical  style  of  phraseology  so  common  to  the 
Spanish  character,  and  which  causes  many,  unacquainted 
with  such  peculiar  modes  of  expression,  to  impute  in- 
tentional want  of  veracity.  And  to  these  amiable  quali- 
ties, and  the  more  materialistic  natures  of  that  throng 
of  ^' practically-minded,"  greedy,  grabbing  gold -seekers 
flocking  to  the  Pacific  shore,  who  have  so  greatly  wronged 
the  larger  portion  of  the  unsophisticated  stock  found 
here,  by  despoiling  them  of  their  heritage,  may  be  at- 
tributed the^  passing  away  from  his  possession  of  that 
vast  estate  once  held  by  him.  Proud  of  the  past  glories 
and  still  prominent  position  of  the  Spanish  race,  the 
General — who  is  a  fine  scholar,  especially  as  an  his- 
torian— loves  to  dwell  upon  their  close  relationship  with 
ancient  Rome,  and  the  undeniable  fact  that  Spain,  more 
than  any  nation  of  Europe,  transmitted  the  wisdom  and 
the  virtues  of  that  august  civilization  down  to  and  con- 
nects herself  with  the  modern.  Excluded  from  taking 
any  olSicial  or  other  influential  part  in  American  affairs, 
(with  which  government  he  has  become  much  disen- 
chanted of  late  years,)  he  takes  a  deep  interest  in  ob- 
serving the  revolutionary  progress  of  events  in  Spain; 
and  is  somewhat  more  than  a  mere  beholder  of  those 
transpiring  in  Mexico,  being  the  trusted  counselor  and 
assistant  of  certain  military  aspirants  and  Pronunciadores 
of  this  latter  perpetually  revolutionized  and  revolution- 
izing land. 


ELIAS    S.   COOPER 

^Y    y.    poOPER    J^ANE,   JA.     p. 


THE  life  of  each  illustrious  man  is  a  drama,  of  which 
the  various  acts  are  subjects  of  the  most  live- 
ly interest,  when  properly  detailed  by  the  faithful  his- 
torian. The  task  of  the  latter,  however,  is  no  easy 
one,  in  case  he  attempts  to  trace  those  links  which,  as 
fractional  parts,  unite  and  truly  represent  the  original. 

Every  great  man's  life,  if  studied  comprehensively, 
reveals  a  purpose ;  and  the  historic  painter  would  fall  far 
short  of  what  art  claims  from  him,  if,  in  the  imagery  of 
his  picture,  he  omitted  the  delineation  of  glimpses  of 
such  a  purpose,  which,  like  a  sunbeam  in  the  background 
of  a  painting,  illumines  and  brings  into  view  each  point 
and  feature  of  the  picture.  Preeminently,  in  the  life  of 
him  whose  name  appears  at  the  head  of  this  sketch,  do 
we  observe  such  an  inspiring  aim  and  continued  purpose, 
that,  like  glory  following  virtue  as  its  shadow,  ''lived 
with  and  accompanied  him  as  an  ever  present  genius." 
Besides  the  intellectual  endowments  with  which  he  was 
gifted,  he  possessed  those  of  the  heart  no  less  unusual. 
To  depict  these,  with  that  simplicity  of  coloring  which 
comports  with  nature,  is  no  ordinary  undertaking. 

Elias  Samuel  Cooper  was  born  in  the  southern  part 
of  Ohio,  in  the  Miami  Valley,  one  of  the  most  beautiful 
sections  of  that  State.  His  father,  Jacob  Cooper,  emi- 
grated at  an  early  period  to  the  West,  from  South  Caro- 
lina. 

Every  mind,  in  its  growth,  finds  the  elements  for  its 
development  and  ultimate  shape,  in  intrinsic  and  extrin- 


238  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

sic  circumstances.  A  paternal  and  maternal  influence, 
each  strongly  defined  in  character,  by  precept  and  exam- 
ple imparted  to  young  Cooper  the  inceptive  germs  of 
mentality,  and  added  to  the  same  that  momentum  and 
accuracy  of  aim  which  went  directly  to  the  destined 
point. 

Of  the  extrinsic  circumstances,  which,  in  many  cases, 
far  more  than  is  known,  gave  shape  and  feature  to  the 
youthful  mind,  may  be  mentioned  the  beautiful  landscape 
of  hill  and  valley  in  which  his  early  home  was  retired ; 
these  were  yet  half-covered  with  those  majestic  groves — 
beach,  walnut,  maple  and  oak — for  which  the  Ohio  val- 
ley is  famous.  During  his  rambles  amidst  the  quiet  se- 
clusion of  such  scenery,  armed  with  his  rifle  in  quest  of 
game,  he  formed  an  attachment  for  all  that  pertains  to 
Nature.  Amid  such  scenery  and  such  life,  no  doubt, 
were  developed  those  primitive  moldings  of  self-reliance, 
those  habits  of  independent  thought,  and  power  of  living 
within  himself,  which  finally  assumed  a  permanent  shape 
and  became  the  distinguishing  traits  of  his  mind  in  his 
mature  years.  Few  men  have  exhibited  so  large  a  share 
as  he  of  that  internal  self-sustaining  power,  which  enabled 
him  to  live  independently  of  those  props  and  supports 
which  are  indispensable  to  most  men. 

From  the  example  of  an  older  brother  who  had  enter- 
ed the  medical  profession,  in  which  he  has  won  and  now 
holds  an  enviable  position,  the  younger  brother  was  led 
naturally  to  embrace  the  same  calling.  The  selection  of 
this  profession  was  his  own  choice,  and  having  once 
chosen  it,  he  gave  himself  to  its  study  with  all  the  pas- 
sionate ardor  of  youthful  enthusiasm.  The  leading  text- 
books— especially  those  upon  Anatomy — he  almost  com- 
mitted to  memory ;  for  this  branch  of  medical  science  he 
early  exhibited  a  strong  predilection,  and  its  almost  end- 
less details,  which  are  tiresome  and  difficult  of  acquire- 
ment by  most  students,  were  mastered  by  him  with  that 
pleasure  and  eagerness  which  love  for  a  science  always 
lends  to  its  study.  A  fondness  for  Human  Anatomy  can 
scarcely  exist  alone — it  naturally  leads  to  Comparative 
Anatomy,  its  kindred  science ;  hence,  we  find  our  young 


ELIAS   S.    COOPER.  239 

student  soon  pushing  his  investigations  in  the  latter 
quarter,  and  learning  there  those  laws  which,  in  the  hum- 
bler grades  of  animated  nature,  do  not  differ  from  those 
existing  in  "the  paragon  of  animals."  With  no  other  guide 
than  his  own  original  and  all  but  intuitive  genius,  he  in- 
stituted a  series  of  most  interesting  and  instructive  ex- 
periments in  the  ligation  of  veins  and  arteries;  in  refer- 
ence to  the  mechanism  and  function  of  the  various  valves ; 
and  the  observations  then  made  by  him,  he  found  subse- 
quently of  great  value  in  operative  surgery. 

The  writer  has  been  for  several  years  a  medical  teacher, 
and  is  familiar  with  the  career  of  many  medical  students ; 
yet  never  did  he  see  such  ardent  devotion  to  study,  and 
untiring  zeal  to  master  the  facts  of  medical  science,  as 
were  evinced  by  his  subject.  Whenever  his  mind  caught 
a  glimpse  of  the  magnificent  array  of  fact  and  theory ;  of 
what  had  been  already  accomplished,  or  what  remained 
to  be  done ;  of  the  list  of  immortal  names  which  are  en- 
shrined in  the  archives  of  medical  science ;  it  awakened 
and  kept  aglow  in  his  bosom  an  impulse  of  devotion  which 
only  expired  with  the  last  vibration  of  his  heart. 

His  medical  collegiate  course  was  commenced  at  Cin- 
cinnati, Ohio,  and  was  completed  at  St.  Louis,  Missouri. 

His  selection  of  medicine,  as  a  profession,  was  not  at 
first  sanctioned  by  parental  consent;  yet  the  opposition 
he  met  with  in  that  quarter  never  diverted  him  for  a  mo- 
ment from  the  fond  purpose  of  his  heart.  His  successful 
career  was  not  long  in  convincing  his  father,  to  whom  he 
was  strongly  attached,  that  the  young  man  had  made  no 
error  in  his  choice  of  a  profession. 

Dr.  Cooper  commenced  the  practice  of  medicine  in  a 
small  town  in  Carroll  County,  Indiana ;  thence  he  moved 
to  Danville,  Hlinois,  where,  though  he  had  but  recently 
attained  his  majority,  his  youth  did  not  prevent  him  from 
acquiring  a  large  and  lucrative  practice.  During  his  stay 
at  Danville,  he  won  his  first  surgical  triumph,  in  tlie  suc- 
cessful removal  of  a  large  portion  of  the  lower  jaw  of  a 
patient.  The  self-possession  and  nerve  of  which  he  dis- 
covered himself  the  master  on  this  occasion,  made  him  at 
once  determine  to  adopt  surgery  as  his    specialty  and 


240  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

sphere  of  action.  The  field,  however,  which  he  occupied 
was  far  too  small  to  gratify  his  ambition ;  and  hence  he 
soon  decided  to  move  to  Peoria,  in  the  same  State,  a 
place  which  gave  promise  of  speedily  growing  into  a  large 
city. 

Upon  his  arrival  at  Peoria,  he  commenced  a  course  of 
private  dissections,  being  convinced  that  the  daily  use  of 
the  scalpel  upon  the  dead  body  is  the  only  way  of  honest- 
ly and  properly  qualifying  one's  self  for  the  practice  of 
surgery;  and  that,  as  the  mariner  can  be  a  successful  pi- 
lot only  when,  with  his  own  hand,  he  has  dropped  the 
sounding  line,  and  with  his  own  eye  noted  each  depth, 
and  the  exact  location  of  each  reef  and  rock,  so  the  sur- 
geon, in  order  to  avert  danger,  and  shun  shipwreck  on  the 
strand  of  ^^  death  by  misapprehension,"  must  be  likewise 
familiar  with  the  topography  of  each  muscle,  nerve^ 
and  blood-vessel  in  the  human  microcosm.  Our  subject 
was  fully  alive  to  these  facts;  and  in  order  to  be  amply 
armed  and  equipped  for  each  and  every  emergency  which 
might  arise,  he  devoted  himself  to  practical  anatomy  with 
the  same  zeal  and  untiring  enthusiasm  which  had  charac- 
terized his  earlier  studies.  He  already  enjoyed  a  compe- 
tency, the  fruits  of  his  previous  practice,  and  was  enabled 
to  give  most  of  his  time  for  nearlj?-  four  years  to  the  pros- 
ecution of  his  favorite  tasks  in  dissecting.  Plis  motto 
was  that  of  the  old  painter,  Apelles :  Nulla  dies  sine  li/iea. 
He  allowed  no  day  to  pass  by,  without  using  his  scalpel. 
His  life  was  then  one  gala-day  of  the  happiest  enthusiasm 
and  devotion  to  the  mastery  of  the  details  of  the  greatest 
science,  without  doubt,  which  has  ever  interested  the 
human  mind,  viz:  Anatomy,  or  a  knowledge  of  the  con- 
stituents, form  and  relations  of  the  parts  composing  the 
human  body.  .Well  might  Galen,  in  his  pardonable  fer- 
vor, call  it  ''  the  noblest  hymn  which  man  can  chant  to 
the  Divinity." 

Some  five  years  after  Dr.  Cooper's  arrival  in  Peoria, 
he  established  a  surgical  infirmary,  where  he  received 
and  treated  all  classes  of  surgical  diseases,  including  those 
of  the  eye  and  ear.  The  success  which  attended  his  prac- 
tice quickly  spread  his  reputation  far  beyond  his  home, 


ELIAS    S.    COOPER.  241 

SO  that  within  two  years  after  the  foundation  of  this  insti- 
tution, patients  flocked  to  him  from  all  portions  of  Illi- 
nois, as  well  as  from  the  adjacent  portions  of  the  neigh- 
boring States  of  Kentucky,  Indiana  and  Iowa.  It  was  in 
the  treatment  for  the  removal  of  deformities  of  the  lower 
limbs  and  of  the  defects  of  the  eye,  that  he  became  espec- 
ially famous. 

It  was  not  long,  however,  before  he  found  that  the 
field  which  he  had  chosen  was  too  limited  in  area;  and 
that,  to  fully  gratify  his  desire  for  professional  honors  and 
renown,  he  must  select  a  new  location.  He  debated  in 
his  mind  whether  it  were  best  for  him  to  settle  in  New 
York,  or  to  seek  one  of  the  cities  of  the  West,  which 
threatened,  in  a  few  years,  to  rival  the  Metropolis.  In 
the  meantime,  to  more  properly  qualify  himself,  and  espec- 
ially, to  compare  his  ideas  with  those  of  the  masters  of 
the  old  world,  he  made  a  trip  to  Europe. 

Upon  his  return  to  America,  he  decided  to  select  the 
Pacific  Coast  as  his  future  home  and  sphere  of  action,  and 
soon  afterwards  he  bade  farewell  to  his  Eastern  friends 
and  the  scenes  of  his  many  professional  triumphs,  and 
departed  for  San  Francisco,  where,  early  in  the  year  1855, 
he  began  the  practice  of  surgery. 

The  profession  of  medicine  was  well  represented  in 
San  Francisco  at  that  time.  To  illustrate  the  difficulties 
under  which  a  new  member  of  the  profession  labored  at 
the  time  of  Dr.  Cooper's  arrival,  in  order  that  the  non- 
professional reader  may  have  a  correct  understanding  of 
the  same,  would  be,  perhaps,  impossible.  Suffice  it  to 
say,  that  those  who  first  came  founded  on  the  mere  fact 
of  prior  arrival  and  earlier  residence  a  claim  to  prece- 
dence almost  equal  to  superior  caste  and  prerogative; 
whence  sprung  a  feeling  which  viewed  with  cold  distrust, 
if  not  positive  enmity,  any  attempt  to  enter  the  self-privi- 
leged ranks.  In  such  a  professional  circle,  a  position  like 
that  which  was  due  to  Dr.  Cooper  could  be  attained  by 
no  one  who  was  unwilling  or  unable  to  meet,  battle  with, 
and  overcome  a  well-organized  opposition.  In  our  subject 
were  united  those  traits  which  most  admirably  adapted 
him  to  wage  such  a  contest,  and  carry  it  to  a  triumphant 
16 


242  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

issue.  Few  conquerors  have  known  so  well  as  he  how 
to  turn  to  good  account  the  fruits  of  their  victories. 
Conciliation,  like  an  attending  spirit,  w^as  ever  present  in 
his  heart,  and,  as  it  were,  held  the  pen  ready  to  blot 
out  the  record  and  even  the  meniorj  of  each  injury  which 
was  done  him.  A  most  intimate  acquaintance  with  him, 
and  with  many  incidents  in  his  life,  convinced  the  writer 
that  this  trait  of  character  was  natural  with  him,  and  was 
not  the  offspring  of  policy,  which  sometimes  dictates  such 
a  course.  It  is  also  true,  though  it  may  seem  paradoxi- 
cal, that  this  conciliatory  spirit  was  coupled  with  a  ready 
courage  for  defense,  and  even  for  assuming  the  offensive, 
when  all  other  means  failed ;  in  fact,  nature  had  endowed 
him  most  richly  with  all  the  resources  of  both  peace  and 
war;  yet  it  was  a  rule  of  his  life  never  to  resort  to  the 
weapons  of  the  latter  until  every  overture  of  the  former 
had  been  rejected. 

As  said,  he  brought  with  him  to  this  Coast  a  fine  pro- 
fessional reputation ;  for  in  his  western  home  public  opin- 
ion had  long  before  crowned  him  with  an  imperishable 
wreath  of  honors,  in  which  were  entwined  unfading  lau- 
rels of  brilliant  surgical  achievements.  In  ihis,  his  newly 
adopted  home,  he  quickly  won  new  honors,  equal  to,  if  not 
eclipsing,  those  already  attained ;  for  with  a  heart  which 
never  knew  the  impulse  of  fear,  and  a  genius  which  was 
only  quickened  to  bolder  and  more  successful  effort  the 
greater  the  difficulties  which  it  had  to  encounter,  it  was 
not  long  ere  his  scalpel,  guided  by  the  unerring  light  of 
superior  anatomical  knowledge,  made  for  him  a  pathway 
wide  and  straight  to  the  front  and  head  of  the  profession. 
It  is  probable  that  no  medical  man  in  so  brief  a  period 
ever  attained  so  wide  a  reputation; — within  five  years 
after  his  arrival,  his  services  were  sought  for  by  patients 
from  every  valley  and  mountain  town  of  tliis  Coast. 

Among  his  achievements  may  be  cited  several  cases  of 
ovariotomy,  an  operation  which  had  to  this  time  never 
been  performed  here ;  also  ligatures  of  all  the  larger  ar- 
teries, including  that  of  the  Arteria  Innoininata^  in  which 
his  essay  proved  more  nearly  a  success  than  any  previous- 
ly recorded  case ;  also  the  Caesarian  Section ;  and  a  great 


ELIAS   S.  COOPER.  243 

number  of  operations  for  the  union  of  disunited  frac- 
tures by  silver  ligatures,  together  with  almost  countless 
cases  of  exsection  of  diseased  bones.  To  the  unprofes- 
sional reader  it  may  be  remarked,  that  the  older  surgeons 
have  as  a  rule  discountenanced  all  interference  with  the 
larger  joints;  he,  however,  from  a  series  of  operations  up- 
on the  lower  animals,  became  convinced,  that  the  ideas 
which  obtained  in  this  domain  of  surgery  were  erroneous, 
and  at  once,  with  that  boldness  which  is  the  heirdom  on- 
ly of  great  minds,  he  leaped  the  barriers  which  old  au- 
thority had  reared  around  these  anatomical  regions,  and 
learned  with  the  highest  satisfaction  that  art  might  safely 
tread  this  hitherto  consecrated  ground ;  and  thus  disease 
be  robbed  of  some  of  the  trophies  which  previously, 
without  resistance,  had  been  abandoned  to  it.  In  this 
domain  of  surgical  science,  his  genius  had  far  outstripped 
the  medical  world  in  general ;  and  had  years  been  granted 
to  him  to  consummate  the  work  which  he  had  planned,  he 
would  no  doubt  have  been  able  to  prove  the  truthfulness 
of  the  ideas  which  he  held  upon  this  subject. 

Besides  the  arduous  labor  which  he  accomplished  in 
his  private  practice,  he  found  time  to  do  much  more. 
For  example:  he  was  one  of  the  prime  founders  of  the 
California  State  Medical  Society,  and  it  was  in  a  great 
measure  due  to  his  individual  efforts  that  this  society 
was  sustained  during  its  existence.  Besides  this,  he  issu- 
ed a  medical  journal, — the  San  Francisco  Medical  Press, 
— the  columns  of  which  paper  were  mainly  filled  with 
communications  from  his  pen.  An  examination  of  this 
periodical  shows  the  editor  to  have  been  a  bold  and  origi- 
nal thinker,  and  endued  Avith  a  candor  which  it  would  be 
well  if  more  of  the  medical  profession  possessed : — for  he 
was  quite  as  ready  to  publish  the  failures  as  the  triumphs 
of  his  knife.  Besides  this  publication,  he  was  a  contributor 
to  several  medical  journals  published  in  other  sections  of 
the  Union.  He  also  retained  notes  of  all  his  more  inter- 
esting surgical  cases,  from  which  he  contemplated  draw- 
ing material  at  some  future  day  for  a  complete  work  upon 
surgery. 

Soon  after  settling  in  San  Francisco,  he  conceived* the 


244  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

design  of  founding  a  school  for  the  education  of  young 
men  there,  who  might  desire  to  fit  themselves  for  the 
medical  profession.  Aided  by  several  medical  gentlemen^ 
he  was  the  foremost  in  the  establishment  of  such  an  in- 
stitution, viz:  the  Medical  Department  of  the  University 
of  the  Pacific,  which  was  organized  and  commenced  opera- 
tion early  in  1859.  In  this  school,  he  filled  the  chairs 
of  Anatomy  and  Surgery.  At  this  institution  were  gra- 
duated a  number  of  young  men,  who  have  taken  high 
position  in  the  medical  fraternity  of  this  Coast. 

As  a  lecturer  he  was  not  endowed  with  great  elo- 
quence, yet  his  style  was  eminently  impressive  and  calcu- 
lated to  fasten  his  ideas  in  the  mind  of  the  student.  His 
delivery  was  slow,  deliberate,  earnest;  his  sentences  were 
not  marred  or  clouded  with  superfluous  verbiage,  but  a 
severe  conciseness  was  the  distinguishing  characteristic  of 
his  lectures;  each  sentence  was  keen  and  pomted,  and  of 
axiom-like  brevity. 

It  was,  however,  in  his  character  as  an  operative  sur- 
geon, that  he  possessed  talent  superior  to  most  other  men. 
The  writer,  who  was  present  and  assisted  him  in  many  of 
his  capital  operations,  can  recall  no  occasion  where  diffi- 
culty, danger  or  unforeseen  complication  threw  him  out 
of  the  sphere  of  his  accustomed  self-possession ;  but  with 
a  bold  heart,  an  anatomical  knowledge  that  was  never  in 
error,  a  fertility  of  invention  that  could  turn  to  good  ac- 
count each  unfavorable  contingency,  an  eye  that  in  a  mo- 
ment could  compass  the  whole  field,  and  a  hand  that  was 
never  seen  to  tremble,  he  inspired  all  who  saw  him  on 
such  occasions  with  the  feeling  that  they  were  in  the  pres- 
ence.of  a  great  master.  No  one  ever  witnessed  his  oper- 
ations, and  marked  the  imperturbable  self-reliance  with 
which  he  wielded  the  knife,  but  with  a  feeling  of  assur- 
ance that  he  would  accomplish  the  purpose  at  which  he 
aimed.  Besides,  a  strongly  marked  and  original  person- 
ality quickly  brought  his  patients  into  sympathy  with 
him;  by  virtue  of  this,  as  well  as  the  faculty  of  inspiring 
his  patients  with  an  unwavering  belief  in  their  final  re- 
covery, he  elfected  cures  which  few  others  could  have 
done. 


ELIAS   S.    COOPER.  245 

The  incessant  mental  and  physical  toil  to  which  he 
subjected  himself,  began,  soon  after  his  arrival  in  this  city, 
to  make  serious  inroads  upon  his  constitution.     Yet  the 
enthusiasm  with  which  he  worked,  and  the  deep  pleasure 
s   which  he  derived  from  his  labors,  caused  him  to  pass  un- 
I   heeded  the  monitions,  which  frequent  attacks  of  illness 
'    gave,  that  he  was  rapidly  ruining  his  health.     In  fact,  as 
[    he  told  the  writer  during  his  last  sickness,  he  had  not 
I   passed  a  day  entirely  free  from  pain  during  the  three  pre- 
ceding years.     Pain,  as  the  physician  knows,  if  long  con- 
tinued, slowly  saps  the  vital  energies;  and  if  to  this  be 
added  the  wasting  influence  of  the  most  severe,  self-im- 
posed tasks,  we  cannot  wonder  that  our  subject  sank  and 
died  in  the  prime  of  manhood. 

On  the  29th  of  May,  1862,  Dr.  Cooper  was  seized 
with  the  illness  which,  with  occasional  interruptions, 
marched  slowly  to  the  fatal  issue,  which  occurred  on  the 
13th  of  October,  ere  he  had  completed  his  fortieth  year. 
His  disease  was  an  extremely  obscure  and  complicated 
nervous  affection.  A  few  days  after  its  commencement 
he  was  attacked  with  amaurosis,  or  loss  of  power  of  the 
optic  nerve,  whereby,  in  the  course  of  one  night  he  be- 
came totally  blind.  Under  these  trying  circumstances, 
his  fortitude  never  forsook  him,  and  when  it  became  ap- 
parent that  his  disease  must  end  fatally,  with  that  cool 
self-possession  which  had  attended  and  guided  him 
through  so  many  difficulties  of  his  eventful  professional 
career — in  fact,  showing  a  genius  quite  as  great  for  the 
emergencies  of  death,  as  he  had  exhibibited  for  those  of 
life, — after  the  arrangement  of  his  affairs,  he  turned  from 
the  world  with  apparently  as  much  ease  as  if  he  never 
had  here  an  aspiration  or  a  hope. 

Near  the  end  of  life,  he  was  animated  with  a  strong 
hope  of  immortality,  and  on  receiving  a  visit  from  a 
friend  to  whom  he  was  much  attached,  he  said,  though  so 
feeble  as  to  be  able  to  pronounce  but  a  word  at  a  time : 
^'In  ten,  twenty,  thirty  or  at  most,  forty  years,  you  will 
come  too,  when  we  will  lay  our  breasts  together  in  an 
eternal  friendship." 

As  his  disease  had  presented  so  many  curious  and  un- 


246  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

usual  complications,  it  was  his  request,  a  long  time  pre- 
vious to  his  death,  that  in  the  event  of  his  not  recovering, 
a  post  mortem  examination  should  be  held  upon  his  body. 
This  request  he  repeated  to  the  writer  but  a  short  period 
before  his  death;  he  wished  it  done  for  two  reasons: 
''first,  that  you  and  my  medical  friends  may  discover  the 
cause  of  my  death,  which  none  of  us  now  know;  and 
secondly,  that  I  may  not  wake  up  in  my  grave." 

The  examination  was  made  in  the  manner  which  he 
had  himself  dictated,  and  the  cause  of  death  found  to  be 
a  wasting  of  the  upper  portion  of  the  spinal  marrow,  and 
a  paucity  or  defeat  of  blood ;  and  was  evidently  attril3uta- 
ble  to  overwork,  to  which  for  years  he  had  subjected 
himself. 

His  death  awakened  everywhere  the  profoundest  feel- 
ings of  sorrow,  and  his  premature  departure  from  this 
life  was  a  public  loss  which  is  still  felt;  for  though  the 
profession  is  well  represented  in  San  Francisco,  yet  no 
one  has  since  proved  himself  by  both  natural  and  acquir- 
ed talents,  so  truly  deserving  of  the  name  of  the  Great 
Physician,  *'  by  Nature's  own  right  hand  anointed." 

Of  the  numerous  obituary  notices  which  at  the  time 
of  his  death  appeared  in  the  daily  press,  the  following 
poem  from  the  pen  of  T.  Gr.  Spear,  Esq.,  of  San  Francisco, 
is  a  beautiful  and  appropriate  tribute  to  his  memory  and 
genius. 

"When  grief  is  sobbing  o'er  life's  withered  flower 
To  which  the  perfume  can  no  more  return, 
"Words  ne'er  avail  in  that  o'erwhelming  hour, 
Nor  stay  the  soul  from  its  eternal  bourn; 
Yet  nature  speaks  a  language  from  the  dust, 
Bevealing  friendly  oracles  sublime, 
That  tell  us  peace  awaits  a  dying  trust 
In  the  supernal  life  transcending  time. 

Where  art  thou,  son  of  science !  bom  with  zeal 
To  cope  with  ills  in  life's  corporeal  sphere? 
Where  is  thy  soul  benignant,  prone  to  heal 
Or  soothe  the  pangs  of  prostrate  mortals  here? 
No  answer  greets  us  from  the  stars  or  waves, 
Nor  echo  back  the  mountains  in  reply, 
Nor  the  green  garden-valleys,  nor  their  graves — 
But,  lo!  it  comes  from  voiced  humanity! 


ELI  AS    S.    COOPER.  247 

The  form  you  seek  is  with  its  withered  clay — 

Inanimate  the  good  physician  lies; 

He  who  recovered  lives  has  passed  away — 

A  shining  light  in  men's  admiring  eyes. 

His  name  is  on  the  starry  scroll  of  time, 

Enrolled  benignly  with  exsective  lore: 

Ah  !  lost  too  soon  to  learning,  race  and  clime. 

His  skillful  hand  shall  touch  to  heal  no  more  ! 

He  found  a  mission  that  the  angels  seek — 

To  walk  'midst  suffering  with  the  power  to  cheer — 

Recalling  health  to  many  a  sallow  cheek, 

And  winning  back  to  courage  failing  fear. 

His  was  the  skill  of  genius,  rare  and  just. 

The  enthusiast's  fervor  with  the  sage's  sense— 

And  science  whispers  from  his  pregnant  dust, 

How  much  she  owes  his  life's  art-love  intense. 

No  snow-crowned  peak  of  knowledge,  cold  and  stem, 

With  narrovved  defiles  and  an  icy  heart, 

"Was  he — repelling  those  who  loved  to  learn 

From  the  broad  realms  of  educated  art; 

But  a  fair  mountain  in  a  genial  sky, 

With  wooded  sides  and  grassy  slopes  between. 

And  mossy  springs  at  which  the  passer.fi-by 

Drank,  wiser  for  the  grateful  Hii^pocrene. 

Brief  and  brave  life  !  the  warm,  high,  ample  soul, 
Poised  for  new  efforts,  seeing  far  and  clear, 
Has  dropped  the  scalpel,  leaving  care  and  dole 
For  sweet  transition  to  a  higher  sphere. 
Look  for  his  eulogy  in  work  well  done. 
In  truth  subserved  by  a  researchful  mind. 
That  fame  may  spread  the  triumphs  Cooper  won 
While  science  is  progressive  with  mankind. " 

He  was  interred  in  Lone  Mountain  Cemetery,  where 
his  ashes  repose  beneath  a  tomb  of  granite  which  has  the 
form  of  an  ellipse,  surmounted  by  an  obelisk, — the  whole 
being  aptly  adapted  by  its  durability,  severe  simplicity  of 
form,  and  brevity  of  inscription,  to  perpetually  material- 
ize the  leading  features  of  his  mind  and  character;  and  at 
the  same  time,  to  express  by  a  single  word  the  fond  hope 
of  his  life, — for  on  it  the  passer-by  whose  eye  turns  from 
one  of  the  most  sublime  landscapes  to  the  resting-place  of 
the  illustrious  dead,  reads  onlj^  this  epitaph: 

Sacred  to  the  Memory  of  Elias  S.  Cooper,  Surgeon. 


^C^  at  THS        -^ 


JOSEPH  W.  WINANS 

j3y  the  Editoi^ 


JOSEPH  W.  WiNANSJ  a  pioneer  of  1849,  and  a  leading 
and  successful  inember  of  the  San  Francisco  bar, 
was  born  in  the  city  of  New  York,  July  18th,  1820,  the 
second  of  nine  children.  His  ancestors  were  English 
and  German,  but  it  is  necessary  to  go  very  far  into  the 
past  in  order  to  trace  them  to  a  European  origin.  They 
came  to  America  many  years  before  the  Revolutionary 
war,  in  which  Joseph's  grandfather  was  a  soldier  in  the 
American  army.  His  son  (father  of  Joseph  W.)  was  a 
prominent  merchant  of  New  York  city  for  forty  years. 
He  long  since  retired  from  business,  having  amassed  a 
large  fortune.  The  old  gentleman  and  his  wife  are  still 
living  in  that  city.  Time  has  dealt  leniently  with  the 
aged  couple,  who  celebrated  their  golden  wedding  some 
years  ago. 

Joseph  W.  Winans  spent  his  youth  in  a  course  of 
continuous  study.  Having  entered  Columbia  College  at 
the  age  of  sixteen,  he  graduated  from  that  worthy  in- 
stitution of  learning  at  the  age  of  twenty.  In  the  same 
class  with  him  were  Hon.  A.  C.  Monson,  formerly  Judge 
of  the  Sixth  Judicial  District  of  California,  and  Hon. 
Ogden  Hoffman,  the  distinguished  Judge  of  the  U.  S. 
District  Court  for  this  State.  Not  resting  from  his  labors, 
nor  pausing  in  the  pursuit  of  knowledge,  young  Winans 
entered  immediately  on  the  study  of  law,  to  which  he 


250  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

applied  himself  for  three  years.  At  the  end  of  that 
time  he  received  his  license  to  practice,  and  also  the 
degree  of  A.M.,  from  Columbia  College,  in  the  year  1843. 

Armed  with  this  license  and  this  endorsement,  Mr. 
Winans  at  once  devoted  himself  to  his  chosen  calling. 
At  that  time,  the  ranks  of  the  legal  profession  in  IS^ew 
York  were  divided  into  two  classes,  attorneys  and  coun- 
selors. After  practicing  for  three  years  ^s  an  attorney, 
with  satisfactory  success,  Mr.  Winans  received  his  license 
as  a  counselor-at-law  the  year  before  the  adoption  of  the 
new  constitution  of  the  State  of  ^^ew  York,  which 
abolished  the  distinction  between  the  two  grades.  For 
three  years  more,  he  practiced  as  an  attorney  and  coun- 
selor at  the  New  York  bar.  The  success  which  rewarded 
his  labors,  in  the  morning  of  his  life,  demonstrated  that 
he  had  not  been  unwise  in  the  choice  of  his  profession. 

With  all  his  love  of  study  and  his  application  to 
business,  our  subject  was  not  without  the  natural  ardor 
of  youth.  He  wished  to  behold  new  fields.  At  the  age 
of  twenty-nine,  in  conjunction  with  a  few  friends,  he 
purchased  a  vessel,  manned  and  fitted  her  for  the  voyage, 
and  set  sail  for  California,  by  way  of  Cape  Horn.  The 
vessel  landed  the  party  at  San  Francisco  on  the  30th  day 
of  August,  1849.  Resting  for  a  few  days  in  the  sand- 
hills of  the  Bay  City,  they  turned  the  prow  of  their  little 
craft  towards  the  north,  and  after  a  few  days'  sail,  ar- 
rived at  Sacramento.  The  City  of  the  Plains,  at  that 
early  day,  was  a  vast  encampment  of  tents  and  rude  huts, 
thronged  by  a  rough  and  restless  multitude,  hailing  from 
all  parts  of  the  globe — the  grand  headquarters  of  the 
miners  of  northern  and  central  California.  Crowded 
with  the  trampling,  rushing,  struggling  mass  of  adven- 
turers who  filled  her  streets  and  her  dens  of  dissipation 
and  crime,  the  city  presented  a  scene  which  cannot  even 
be  imagined  by  those  who  never  beheld  the  motley 
picture. 

Here  Mr.  Winans  pitched  his  tent.  His  journey  was 
at  an  end.  Only  a  few  days  were  devoted  to  observation 
and  repose,  when  he  opened  a  law  office  and  commenced 
the  practice  of  a  science  unknown  and  unrecognized  by 


JOSEPH   W.    WINANS.  251 

the  lawless  throng  which  surrounded  hhn.  His  course 
was  in  striking  contrast  to  that  of  his  fellow-pioneers. 
The  community  was  mostly  composed  of  miners  and 
gamblers,  ^"early  every  eager  immigrant  who.  in  the 
hot  pursuit  of  the  hidden  treasure,  was  content  to  keep 
within  the  bounds  of  honesty  and  propriety,  upon  his 
arrival  sought  the  mines  and  went  to  work  as  a  miner; 
while  a  rapidly  increasing  multitude,  not  over-scrupulous 
as  to  the  means  or  manner  of  acquiring  fortune,  attached 
themselves  to  the  second  class  or  division  of  the  com- 
munity. This  latter  class  embraced  many  (a  sad,  yet 
curious  fact)  who  had  been  above  suspicion  in  older  and 
sober  communities.  In  the  more  laborious,  3^et  not  much 
larger,  class  of  miners,  could  be  seen  the  pale  student, 
the  prim  shop-clerk,  the  emaciated  teacher,  and  the  deli- 
cate professional  man,  grappling  with  the  earth  and  rocks, 
side  by  side  with  laborers  of  heavy  build  and  brawny 
arm.  ^orval,  when  he  had  come  to  do  *'  the  happy  deed 
that  gilded  his  humble  name,"  did  not  look  upon  the 
"  shepherd's  slothful  life"  with  greater  disdain  than  did 
the  doctor  and  lawyer  of  '49  feel  towards  the  profession 
to  which  his  youth  was  bred,  and  which  had  been  ac- 
quired at  the  cost  of  so  much  time,  care,  and  labor. 
Bent  only  upon  the  rapid  acquisition  of  wealth,  where- 
with to  return  to  the  old  home,  the  land  where  profes- 
sions flourished,  this  class  of  men  cared  only  for  the 
mineral  riches,  and  gave  no  thought  to  the  grand  future, 
of  California.  To  their  restless  spirits,  this  fair  and 
fertile  region  offered  no  inducements  for  permanent 
abode,  but  was  nothing  more  than  a  temporary  abiding- 
place  for  fortune-seekers. 

Our  subject,  however,  be  it  said  to  his  enduring  credit, 
was  not  a  victim  to  the  general  hallucination.  He  had 
faith  in  his  new  home.  That  faith  assured  him  that  the 
existing  dissolute  state  of  society  must  ere  long  give  place 
to  law  and  order,  and  at  times  gave  him  glimpses  of  a  new 
and  mighty  empire,  which  would  rear  its  power  upon  the 
Paoific  slope,  blessed  by  the  influence  of  American  civil- 
ization, protected  by  the  American  arms  and  the  American 
flag. 


252  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

A  few  months  after  he  commenced  practice,  Mr. 
Winans  formed  a  partnership  with  John  G.  Hyer,  which 
continued  for  ten  years,  and  up  to  the  time  of  Mr. 
Winans' s  removal  to  San  Francisco.  The  firm  of  Winans 
&  Hyer  was  for  many  years  acknowledged  as  the  lead- 
ing law-firm  of  the  capital.  When  that  city  was  visited 
by  the  most  terrible  of  her  many  afflictions,  the  great 
flood  of  1860-'61,  Mr.  Winans  removed  with  his  family  to 
the  metropolis.  There  he  soon  formed  a  partnership  with 
Mr.  D.  P.  Belknap,  the  compiler  of  the  valuable  work 
upon  Probate  Practice  in  California.  This  partnership 
still  continues. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Winans  was  formerly  a  Whig.  He 
cherished  a  deep-seated  devotion  to  the  principles  of  the 
Whig  party.  Through  the  columns  of  the  press,  as  the 
editor  of  several  influential  journals,  and  on  the  stump, 
as  a  speaker  in  many  exciting  campaigns,  he  was  always 
ready  to  do  battle  for  the  old  party  which  has  passed 
away.  Since  the  fall  of  that  party,  he  has  uniformly 
acted  with  the  Republicans.  He  has  never  been  a  seeker 
after  office.  He  has  held  many  honorable  and  responsible 
positions  in  Sacramento  and  San  Francisco,  but  has  been 
before  the  people  on  only  two  occasions  as  a  candidate 
for  office;  first,  in  Sacramento,  in  1850,  when  his  Whig 
principles  led  him  to  defeat,  as  the  candidate  of  his  party 
for  Recorder  or  Criminal  Judge;  second,  in  San  Francisco, 
in  1865,  when  he  was  elected  as  the  Union  candidate  for 
School  Director  of  the  sixth  ward  of  that  city.  In  1852, 
he  was  elected  by  the  Board  of  Aldermen  of  Sacramento, 
to  the  position  of  City  Attorney  or  Corporation  Counsel, 
which  he  held  for  several  j^ears. 

In  1853,  he  was  elected  President  of  the  Pioneer 
Society  of  Sacramento,  and  twice  reelected  to  that  place. 
In  1858,  he  was  chosen  President  of  the  Sacramento 
Library  Association.  For  many  years  he  has  been  a 
delegate  to  the  General  Convention  of  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church  for  the  Diocese  of  California,  and  in 
1859  attended  the  session  of  that  body  held  at  Rich- 
mond, Virginia,  on  which  occasion  he  took  frequent  part 
in  their  debates.     In   1861,  he  was  appointed   by   the 


JOSEPH    W.    WINANS.  253 

Legislature  one  of  the  trustees  of  the  State  Library, 
and  was  subsequently  chosen  by  his  associates  President 
of  the  Board.  He  still  occupies  this  position.  In  1864, 
he  was  elected  President  of  the  Society  of  California 
Pioneers  of  San  Francisco;  and  in  1865,  President  of  the 
Board  of  Education  of  that  city.  He  has  been  one  of 
the  regularly  retained  counsel  for  the  Union  League  since 
its  organization  in  California. 

Mr.  Winans  wields  a  vigorous  and  facile  pen.  During 
his  residence  at  Sacramento,  notwithstanding  his  large 
law  practice,  he  found  time  to  indulge  his  literary  taste. 
For  many  years,  he  edited  the  Index  and  TimeSj  both 
papert^  published  in  Sacramento.  He  was  also  for  years  a 
frequent  contributor  to  the  Sacramento  Union.  Some  of 
the  ablest  editorials  in  that  popular  journal,  which,  from 
time  to  time,  have  attracted  public  attention,  are  the  pro- 
ductions of  his  pen.  In  the  columns  of  that  paper  have 
been  first  submitted  to  the  public  eye  a  great  many  of  his 
essays  and  poems,  most  of  them  appearing  under  the  nom 
de  plume  of  ''  Glycus."  Over  this  name,  and  in  the  edit- 
orial columns  of  the  leading  journals  of  the  State,  he 
has  talked  so  often  and  familiarly  to  the  reading  public, 
that  it  is  unnecessary  here  to  even  refer  to  his  qualities  as 
a  writer. 

Mr.  Winans  is  a  finished  classical  scholar.  In  the 
course  of  his  life,  he  has  been  called  upon  to  deliver 
lectures  and  orations  before  political,  benevolent,  and 
other  associations  of  men.  He  is  a  fluent  speaker,  and 
his  manner  and  gesticulation  graceful  and  earnest.  His 
voice,  though  not  harsh  or  unpleasant,  does  injustice  to 
his  rich  and  glowing  diction.  His  power  is  in  his  prolific 
pen,  w^hich  never  tires.  A  collection  of  his  miscellaneous 
productions  would  show  him  to  be  one  of  the  most 
voluminous  writers  on  the  Pacific  coast. 

In  1864,  Mr.  Winans  married  the  second  daughter  of 
Alexander  Badlam,  Sr.,  of  Sacramento.  He  has  three 
living  children. 

In  his  office,  he  is  a  hard  worker  and  close  student. 
His  firm  attachment  to  the  practice  of  law  and  his 
close  application  to  business  have  secured  him  at  all  times 


254  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OP   THE   PACIFIC. 

a  handsome  business.  He  is  eminently  a  successful 
lawyer.  Kor  has  his  success  been  the  result  of  accident: 
it  has  been  the  legitimate  fruit  of  patient  toil,  and  a  judi- 
cious use  of  his  talents. 

To  his  profession  he  has  ever  been  loyal,  and  beneath 
her  banner  he  has  walked  for  over  twenty -five  years. 
His  constancy  and  fidelity  to  the  noblest  of  sciences,  fur- 
nish a  bright  example  to  the  army  of  young  men  in 
California  who  are  about  entering  upon  the  practice  of 
law. 


THE  GOLDEN  WEDDING. 

BY  JOSEPH  W.  WINANS. 

From  mountain  springs  far,  far  apart,  out  in  the  frozen  north, 

Two  tender  rills,  in  infant  glee,  to  life  and  light  burst  forth; 

And  gathering  volume  as  they  flowed  from  their  primeval  source, 

'Midst  constant  change  of  scene  and  soil  held  their  appointed  course. 

Through  channels  formed  by  nature's  law  their  destined  routes  to  run. 

They  glided  on  to  meet  at  last  and  mingle  into  one. 

Then  seaward  on  its  broadening  path  the  shining  river  sped. 

To  gladden  every  clime  through  which  its  fruitful  waters  spread; 

And  further  as  it  swept  along,  remoter  lands  to  lave, 

Like  human  progi-ess,  it  diffused  a  more  enriching  wave. 

While  through  the  densely  peopled  realms  it  opulently  rolled, 

Upon  its  breast,  whose  broad  expanse  the  sunlight  tinged  with  gold, 

From  ship  to  shallop  many  a  craft  to  many  a  distant  shore, 

With  life  and  commerce  freighted  full,  that  lordly  river  bore; 

Down  drifting  through  the  dusty  land,  with  fertilizing  tide. 

It  grew  amain  a  cherished  source  of  luxury  and  pride; 

Until,  where  at  the  marge  of  earth  the  sounding  sm-ges  roar, 

Deep  into  ocean's  dense  abyss  it  plunged  for  evermore. 

'Twas  thus  in  the  good  olden  time — the  time  of  long  ago — 

From  separate  springs,  my  parents  dear,  your  lives  began  to  flow; 

Through  flowery  scenes  they  coursed  along,  with  ceaseless  verdure  bright, 

Till,  ere  youth's  halcyon  days  had  fled,  love  bade  them  to  unite. 

Adown  the  wide  domain  of  time — that  fempire  broad  and  free — 

Your  blended  lives  have  flowed  along,  as  river  flows  to  sea. 

Through  fifty  fluctuating  years — a  century  half  told — 

Not  like  Pactolus'  wave,  of  eld,  which  ran  o'er  sands  of  gold, 

But  rather  like  that  grander  stream  whose  waters,  as  they  glide 

From  State  to  State,  still  stretching  on,  a  continent  divide; 

Your  mingled  destinies,  beloved,  expanding  as  they  roll. 

Have  scattered  blessings  far  and  wide  while  speeding  to  their  goaL 

Full  many  a  gallant  argosy,  upon  its  glowing  breast, 

The  river  of  your  nuptial  life  has  tenderly  caressed; 

Down  through  the  baiTcn  years  has  poured  its  renovating  stream, 

Till  what  were  drear  and  dead  before,  with  life  and  beauty  teem. 

The  motley,  yet  imposing  fleet,  upon  that  river  borne. 

Is  gliding  to  the  happy  land  whence  none  shall  o'er  return; 

With  high  resolves,  and  virtues  rare,  and  deeds  of  noble  worth, 

With  precious  souls  which  from  your  own  took  their  immortal  birth. 


JOSEPH   W.    WINANS.  255 

All  richly  freighted  for  yon  shore  which  lies  beyond  the  main, 
Whose  radiant  harbor,  when  attained,  yields  everlasting  gain. 
Majestic  river!  still  flow  on,  and — in  thy  widening  scope — 
Stiil  promise  to  the  futmre  give  and  to  the  present  hope ; 
Nor  haste,  until  thy  bright  career  of  usefulness  is  o'er, 
To  plunge  into  that  mighty  void,  upon  whose  further  shore 
No  mortal  eye  hath  ever  gazed  since  being  first  began, 
And  sorrow-laden  earth  was  made  the  heritage  of  man. 
Avv-hile  on  thy  prohfic  course  along  the  sunny  land 
Yet  linger  ere  thy  billows  seek  the  dim  and  misty  strand 
Where  ocean  waits  thy  coming  with  its  wierd  and  solemn  song: 
How  short,  0  Time!  how  short  thy  reign — Eternity,  how  long! 


THE  DIGOTTY  OF  LABOR, 

A  Lecture  delivered  before  the  Mercantile  Library  Association  of  San  Francisco, 
on  Friday  evening,  December  28th,  1855. 

BY  JOSEPH  W.  WINANS. 

The  world  is  awakening  from  its  long  sleep  of  ages.  The  people 
are  shaking  off  their  lethargy,  as  the  lion  shakes  the  dew-drops  from 
his  mane.  Low,  muttering  thunders  give  portent  of  an  earthquake, 
whose  coming  shall  shake  terribly  the  nations.  Thrones  are  tottering, 
dynasties  downfalling,  kingdoms  crumbling  into  dust.  The  wave  of 
Revolution  is  sweeping  onward,  over  the  wrecks  of  empire.  Earth's 
millions  soon  shall  own  no  despot's  sway.  The  people  are  the  rulers. 
Labor  is  king !  Mark  the  world-wonders  that  were  wrought  in  earlier 
days,  when  labor  was  the  serf,  and  not  the  lord.  Gaze  through  the 
earth  and  down  the  ages.  What  girded  Babylon,  with  its  tremendous 
walls  ?  What  reared  the  pyramids  ?  What  struck  a  sphynx  forth  from 
the  solid  rock?  What  built  the  Parthenon?  WTiat  stormed  the  walls 
of  ocean-circled  Tyre,  the  IVIistress  of  the  Seas,  and  left  the  billows 
sporting  in  her  place  ?  What  brought  out  Jupiter  Olympus  from  the 
marble,  and  formed  Rhodian  Colossus  from  the  brass  ?  Labor — labor 
of  the  arm  in  him  who  wrought,  labor  of  the  head  in  him  who  planned. 
But  though  these  achievements  were  the  trophies  of  labor's  earlier  day, 
won  by  the  energy  and  efforts  of  a  few,  prouder,  far  prouder  triumphs 
greet  it  now,  when  all  mankind  acknowledge  its  supremacy — when 
every  tongue  is  vocal  with  its  praise — when  millions  prove  its  power 
with  the  thought  and  hand.  Although  the  ancient  world  regarded 
labor  as  the  instrimient  of  great  designs,  yet  was  it  ever  stigmatised 
by  low  associations  and  invidious  conceptions.  Even  the  Mantuan, 
who  tells  us,  "Labor  conquers  all  things,"  calls  it  "  improhus"  or 
base.  It  Avas  reserved  for  a  later  age;  an  age  of  energy  and  toil;  an 
age  in  which  the  ploughshare  overcomes  the  sword,  and  the  spear  is 
forsaken  for  the  hammer  ;  an  age  whose  wondrous  spread  of  intelli- 
gence and  freedom  has  taught  man  the  grandeur  of  his  power  and 
the  mightiness  of  his  ambition;  an  age  of  which  progress  is  the  law, 


266  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

and  development  the  consequence;  it  was  reserved  for  suclian  age 
to  trample  down  the  prejudices  of  the  olden  time  and  vindicate  the 
majesty  of  labor.  If  the  lightning's  spark,  touched  to  the  trembling 
wires,  athwart  the  continents  flings  thoughts,  like  rockets,  burning 
as  they  fall,  so  labor  strikes  from  man  those  powerful  displays  of 
physical  and  mental  prowess  which  electrify  the  world. 

Contrasted  by  prominent  but  individual  examples,  the  present,  it 
is  true,  has  slight  advantage  over  ancient  times.  AVould  you  point 
to  the  creations  of  manual  contrivance?  What  later  structures  over- 
come in  vastness  and  elaboration  the  massive  masonry  of  Trajan's 
bridge,  or  the  stupendous  causeway  of  the  Yia  Appia?  Would  you 
move  amid  the  realms  of  Art,  or  scan  the  works  of  Intellect?  Who 
but  the  ancients  fashioned  and  contrived  the  rich  designs  of  archi- 
tecture, or  brought  its  forms  to  such  a  rare  perfection?  How  many 
an  art  of  which  they  were  the  masters  has  been  lost  for  ever  to  the 
world !  What  fabric  vies  in  splendor  with  the  Etruscan  vase  ?  What 
sybarite  novr  sleeps  on  j)urple  gorgeous  as  the  Tyrian  dye  ?  What 
combination  of  ingredients  can  reproduce  or  rival  the  Corinthian 
brass?  Though  Michael  Angelo  mounts  to  sublimity  and  Claude 
excels  in  softness,  jet  did  not  Zeuxis  by  his  art  beguile  the  very  birds 
of  heaven?  Is  not  Parrhasius  reputed  the  Correggio,  and  Apelles 
the  Raphael  of  antiquity?  Who  ventures  to  contend  that  the  superb 
creations  of  Canova  or  Thorwalsden  shame  the  chiseled  splendors  of 
Praxiteles  or  Phidias  ?  If  England  has  her  Garrick  and  France  her 
Talma,  did  not  Rome  glory  in  a  Roscius?  If  listening  senates  hung 
spell-bound  upon  the  eloquence  of  Burke  and  crowded  auditories 
thrilled  at  the  exhortations  of  Bossuet,  did  not  Isocrates  surpass 
them  in  refinement,  Lysias  in  elegance,  Demosthenes  in  burning 
vehemence  and  force  ?  What  though  Shakspeare  rules  the  minds  of 
men  vath  undisputed  sway,  has  Homer  been  forgotten?  Hath  Pin- 
dar's lyric  lost  its  fire,  or  Virgil's  strain  its  sweetness,  because  Milton 
clothed  his  song  in  thunders  and  Tennyson  caught  up  the  music  of 
the  spheres?  Onward,  with  measured  pomp,  in  grand  battalions, 
moves  the  columned  language  of  Macaulay,  while  the  contrasted 
periods  of  Cicero  sv/ell  like  an  organ  on  the  ear.  And  so  the  paral- 
lel might  be  prolonged.  But  herein  lies  the  difference.  The  ancient 
world  is  brilliant  in  its  instances  of  high  preeminence,  yet  these 
were  isolated  and  individual,  while  the  mass  lay  altogether  dormant, 
sunken  in  ignorance  or  degradation;  but  now,  the  people,  prompted 
by  the  strong  incentives  of  intelligence  and  freedom,  have  begun 
to  v7ork.  What  a  startling  change  has  human  progress  vvTought! 
Beforctime  the  nation  was  a  force,  and  acted  through  ifcs  chief.  The 
people  were  the  atom-cloments,  which,  in  their  combination,  made 
that  force,  and  the  earth  contained  so  many  moral  forces  only  as  it 
numbered  nations. 

Now  man,  the  individual,  is  in  himself  a  force,  an  independent 
force,  and  the  earth  has  just  so  many  forces  as  it  numbers  living, 
thinking,  acting  men :  for  even  in  this  day  of  unexampled  elTort  many 
exist  who  do  not  live,  many  are  sentient  v^^ho  do  not  think,  many  con- 
cern themselves  with  manifold  affairs  who  do  not  act!    Beforetime 


JOSEPH   W.    WINANS. 


257 


men  were  thought  for  by  their  rulers,  and  thus  became  mere  agents 
of  a  despot's  will;  now,  in  the  general  heritage  of  independence, 
man  has  discerned  his  right — nay,  his  divine  prerogative — of  thinking 
for  himself.  No  longer  moping  in  the  thrall  of  tyranny  or  reft  of 
the  free  franchise  of  opinion,  he  has  risen  into  the  full  stature  of 
his  manhood,  realised  the  magnitude  of  his  capacity,  and  in  that 
knovv'ledgc  verified  the  true  nobility  of  labor;  of  labor,  in  its  highest 
form,  the  union  of  the  physical  and  mental;  labor  of  the  sinewy  arm, 
labor  of  the  burning  brain !  So  he  whose  vocation  is  mechanical  is 
prompted  to  employ  his  hours  of  leisure  in  the  cultivation  of  the 
mind;  he  whose  pursuits  are  mental,  to  inrigorate  his  frame  by 
frequent  action.  And  thus,  while  mind  and  body  act,  react  upon 
each  other  with  reciprocal  intensity,  man,  the  lord  of  creation, 
though  "  fallen  from  his  high  state,"  without  a  fetter  on  his  tireless 
wing,  is  rising  higher,  higher,  in  his  Ihght  towards  the  stars.  In 
the  deeds  of  labor  are  involved  the  destinies  of  human  nature.  It 
is  the  source  of  all  excellence,  of  all  attainment;  the  instrument  of 
progress,  the  parent  of  invention;  the  universal,  absolute,  all- 
conqueror,  omnipotent  in  prowess,  like  Achilles,  but  with  no  vul- 
nerable spot  upon  the  heel.  In  the  language  of  an  eminent  econo- 
mist, ' '  Labor  is  the  talisman  that  has  raised  man  from  the  condition 
of  the  savage;  that  has  changed  the  desert  and  the  forest  into  cul- 
tivated fields;  that  has  covered  the  earth  with  cities  and  the  ocean 
with  ships;  that  has  given  us  abundance,  comfort,  and  elegance 
instead  of  want,  misery,  and  barbarism: 

"All  is  the  gift  of  industry,  whate'er 
Exalts,  embellislies,  and  renders  life 
Delightful!'  " 

±>eiore  mortal  man  was  fashioned  from  this  globe  on  which  he 
treads,  the  Divine  hand  had  by  its  own  operations  proclaimed  the 
dignity  of  labor.  That  Grand  Architect  who  set  a  universe  in  mo- 
tion; who  called  forth  order  out  of  chaos;  at  whose  bidding  sprung 
from  realms  of  darkness  those  refulgent  orbs  v/hich  move  upon  their 
courses  through  the  unmeasured  track  of  space,  and  down  the  march 
of  ages;  who  disclosed  the  sublime  harmonies  of  nature,  and  stamped 
beauty  in  living  radiance  upon  the  features  of  creation;  through  six 
primeval  days  wrought  out  His  wondrous  plan,  and  the  morning 
stars  when  they  sang  together  at  the  earliest  dawn  of  being  were 
jubilant  of  praise  over  the  consummated  work  of  Deity.  Man,  the 
noblest  of  created  things,  was  designed  for  perfect  happiness  in 
continuous  repose,  and,  but  for  his  wanton  disobedience,  v/ould  still 
have  wandered  through  the  scented  groves  of  Eden  and  by  the 
margins  of  its  pleasant  streams,  amidst  the  ceaseless  bloom  of 
flowers  and  the  lulHng  melody  of  fountains — unvext  with  toil,  un- 
clouded with  a  care,  his  every  sense  pervaded  with  delight,  "  all 
nature  beauty  to  his  eye  or  music  to  his  ear." 

But  man  fell,  and  forth  went  the  Divine  fiat,  "  cursed  is  the 
ground  for  thy  sake,"  "  in  the  sweat  of  thy  face  shalt  thou  cat  bread 
until  thou  return  unto  the  ground."    Yet  what  was  thus  visited,  in 

17 


258  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

long  entail,  on  him  and  his  posterity  for  ever  as  a  seeming  curse,  was 
converted  instantly  by  the  Supreme  Benevolence  into  a  blessing, 
and  labor  was  ennobled  by  Omnipotence,  the  punishment  trans- 
muted to  reward  through  "  the  dear  alchemy  of  mercy,"  because  it 
was  the  lot  of  that  being  whom  He  had  created  in  His  image.  Thus 
honored  with  the  sanction  and  enjoined  by  the  command  of  Deity, 
made  from  the  first  the  destiny  of  human  nature,  labor  is  and  ever 
must  be  honorable;  honorable  in  all  its  forms,  material  or  mental; 
honorable  in  all  its  achievements,  whether  of  the  hand  or  brain.  It 
matters  not  in  what  department  of  duty  you  may  act.  The  very 
diversity  of  occupations  and  pursuits  becomes  the  most  efficient 
means  for  the  advancement  of  the  common  good.  One,  by  the  aid 
of  microscopes,  constructs  the  most  minute  contrivances  of  mech- 
anism; another,  by  the  strength  of  brawny  arms,  shapes  to  his  will 
the  rigid  iron.  One,  delving  amid  darkness,  tears  the  bright  gold 
from  the  bowels  of  the  earth;  another  opens  up  the  globe  in  smiling 
furrows,  teeming  with  increase.  In  the  lone  midnight,  far  above 
the  city's  murmur,  twinkles  the  scholar's  solitary  lamp. 

By  painful  calculation,  the  astronomer  traces  out  new  bodies  in 
the  fields  of  space,  which  have  shone  unseen  for  .centuries;  by 
elaborate  experiment,  the  chemist  detects  new  affinities,  and  estab- 
lishes new  principles  in  matter.  While  the  investigations  of  science 
are  disclosing  the  abstruse  mysteries  of  nature,  the  labors  of  the 
closet  are  adding  to  the  sum  of  human  knowledge.  If  Bacon,  by 
profound  analysis,  improved  the  discipline,  enlarged  the  scope  of 
mind,  and  revealed  the  subtler  forms  of  intellectual  philosophy, 
Kepler  and  Leibnitz  and  D'Alembert  achieved  results  no  less  im- 
l^ortant  by  their  researches  into  the  hidden  arcana  of  the  universe. 
Thus  the  great  stream  of  labor  floweth  on,  bearing  the  works  and 
treasures  of  all  ages  on  its  breast  in  rudest  crafts  and  stateliest 
argosies,  hoarding  up  boundless  wealth  within  its  depths,  wafting 
the  voyager  upon  its  heaving  tides  to  fame  and  fortune !  Who  is  it 
that  thrives  among  his  fellows,  and  mounts  to  eminence,  and  rules 
the  meaner  throng?  Who  but  him  of  the  iron  will  and  ceaseless 
hand;  whose  mind  is  eager  for  the  conquest  of  his  purpose;  whose 
frame  demands  no  respite  from  its  toil;  who  bends  him  firmly  to  his 
"task,  while  the  common  eye  is  hid  in  slumber,  and  flinches  not  for 
obstacle  or  opposition;  he  whose 

"  keen  spirit 
Seizes  the  prompt  occasion — makes  the  thoughts 
Start  into  instant  action,  and  at  once 
Plans  and  performs,  resolves  and  executes." 

Truly  saith  the  Edstem  proverb:  '*In  proportion  to  one's  labor 
eminence  is  gained,  and  he  who  seeketh  eminence  passeth  sleepless 
nights.  He  diveth  into  the  sea  who  searcheth  for  pearls,  and  suc- 
ceedeth  in  acquiring  lordship.  Whoso  seeketh  eminence  without 
laboring  for  it,  loseth  his  life  in  the  search  of  vanity."  In  every 
rank  of  life,  in  each  department  of  action,  labor  is  indispensable  to 
the  attainment  of  success.  Would  you  speak  of  the  triumphs  of 
genius?    What  is  genius  without  labor?    A  meteoric  glare  that 


JOSEPH   W.    WINANS.  259 

gleams  athwart  the  skies  one  fitful  moment,  then  vanishes  in  gloom. 
What  is  labor  without  genius  ?  The  agent  and  contriver  of  all  that 
is  useful,  all  that  is  enduring  amongst  men.  Between  labor  and 
genius  the  contrast  is  as  the  fable  of  the  race  between  the  tortoise 
and  the  hare — vv^hile  one  sleeps  by  the  way,  the  other  gains  the 
goal.  This  dazzles  the  world  with  the  brilliance  of  an  ineffectual 
flame,  that  toileth  on  unseen,  unnoted,  and — like  the  toilings  of  the 
coral-line  artificers  in  the  secret  depths  of  ocean — rears  by  minute 
but  constant  efforts  its  stupendous  work.  Genius  is  as  a  crystal 
cavern  pictured  on  the  stage,  blazing  with  scenic  decorations,  gor- 
geous with  display,  yet  transient  and  illusive;  a  grand  effect,  wrought 
by  the  trickery  of  meretricious  art,  magnificent  with  gaud  and  tinsel; 
to  enter  in  and  gaze  on  which  the  senses  are  allured  by  the  blandish- 
ments of  music  and  illumination.  But  labor  is  as  a  cavern  in  the 
earth,  repulsive  and  forbidding  in  its  entrance,  winding  far  through 
narrow,  dark,  and  tortuous  paths,  yet  bursting  forth  at  last  into  a 
vast  expanse  of  fretted  architraves  and  glittering  stalactites;  a  bright 
reality,  superbly  splendid  in  the  torch's  ray,  whose  slow  construc- 
tion was  the  work  of  time,  yet  whose  duration  is  unending. 

But  from  the  combination  of  genius  with  labor,  this  blended 
usefulness  and  brilliance,  emanate  the  loftiest  achievements  of  man- 
kind; for  labor  is  to  genius  what  the  lapidary's  skill  is  to  the  gem. 
From  the  dull,  clouded,  and  distorted  mass  it  shapes  a  thing  of 
light,  whose  polished  foiTQ  blazes  with  lustre,  and  emits  imperish- 
able splendor.  It  is  this  combination  which  rears  those  material 
and  mental  fabrics  that  fill  the  ages  with  their  praise.  It  is  this 
which  scales  the  dizzy  heights  of  fame,  which  penetrates  with  ships 
"  informed  by  fire"  to  oceans'  farthest  realms,  which  lights  ambition's 
flaming  torch.  It  is  this  which  gave  the  vast  learning  of  Aristotle 
to  the  world;  gave  forth  those  grand  old  tomes  evoked  from  their 
literary  grave  at  Scepsis,  after  a  sepulture  of  three  score  years.  It 
is  this  which  carved  a  pathway  to  the  heights  of  glory  with  the 
sword  of  Austerhtz.  It  is  this  which  made  the  earth  a  race-course 
for  the  iron  steed,  and  belted  it  with  the  thought-communicating 
wires.  It  is  this  which  calls  forth  intellect  from  its  obscure  abode 
and  sends  its  powers  flaming,  like  the  fabled  coursers  of  the  sun, 
through  space  and  time.  The  myth  informs  us  that  ^olus  confined 
the  winds  within  a  narrow  cave,  but  when  he  loosed  their  chains, 
they  rushed  hnpetuously  forth  and  filled  the  earth  with  uproar, 
madly  careering  over  land  and  sea,  sweeping  whole  navies  into 
wreck,  and  scourging  continents.  So  in  the  cavern  of  the  brain 
man's  thought  lies  darkly  hid,  but,  wrested  thence,  it  seizes  earth 
and  vastest  realms  of  space  within  its  grasp.  And  yet  this  gift  of 
genius  is  a  far  rarer  faculty  than  men  suppose.  It  may  be  said  that 
what  is  commonly  reputed  genius — not  the  faculty  itself,  but  its 
mere  simulacrum — is  but  another  name  for  labor,  indefatigable,  all- 
contriving  labor.  Between  man  and  man  the  powers  of  mind  are 
nearly  on  a  level.  And  yet  he  who  cultivates  those  powers  gTOws 
prominent,  perhaps  preeminent — nay,  oftentimes  controls  the  world, 
while  thousands  of  his  fellows,  not  less  gifted  than  himself,  corrode 


260  REPEESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

their  talents  in  the  rust  of  indolence,  or  stifle  them  within  the  coils 
of  pleasure.  It  is  this  j)erversion  of  his  nature  from  its  law  of 
labor  that  deprives  man  of  self-knowledge.  Unless  disclosed  by 
accident  or  circumstance,  he  rarely  knows  his  powers  or  the  reach 
of  his  capacity. 

Had  not  a  revolution  reddened  France  with  blood,  no  Robespierre 
would  ever  have  been  thrust  upon  mankind;  had  not  another  revolu- 
tion wrenched  America  from  England,  the  Father  of  his  country 
would  have  been  unknown  to  fame.  Had  Danton  been  a  patriot  in 
the  cause  of  American  independence,  and  Lafayette  a  Eed  Republi- 
can, how  different  the  history  of  each.  Until  stung  and  goaded  into 
vehemence  by  the  scorpion  lash  of  the  reviewers,  Byron  never  wrote 
a  genuine  poetic  line.  If  Waverly,  sent  forth  as  an  experiment, 
had  proved  a  failure,  the  superb  romances  of  Sir  Walter  Scott  would 
have  been  lost  unto  the  world.  What  rendered  Hampden  glorious 
and  gave  to  Sydney  deathless  immortality,  but  the  tyranny  of  an 
oppressive  throne?  To  these,  and  myriad  others  of  the  mighty  or 
renowned,  it  was  the  magic  wand  of  circumstance  revealed,  by  an 
external  spark,  the  fire  within,  and  the  spell  of  labor  caused  that 
fire  to  glow  before  the  nations.  True  it  is,  that  men  have  but  little 
knowledge  of  themselves.  The  "  Gnothiseauton"  is  as  great  a 
problem  now  as  in  the  days  of  Thales  of  Miletus.  AVanting  the 
development  of  labor,  the  great  man  lives  in  ignorance  of  great- 
ness, and  the  mighty  man  unconscious  of  his  might,  and  after  an 
inglorious  career  they  both  go  down  into  the  tomb,  as  units  of  the 
common  throng,  unhonored  and  unsung.  In  the  multitudinous 
congregations  of  mankind,  there  is  many  an  undiscovered  Pericles 
or  Plato,  Wellington  or  W^ebster,  Leverrier  or  Luther.  So  thought 
Gray,  when  he  gazed  in  fancy  on  the  quiet  churchyard,  and  thus 
mused : 

**  Perhaps  in  this  neglected  spot  is  laid 
Some  heart  once  pregnant  with  celestial  fire; 
Hands  that  the  rod  of  empire  might  have  swayed. 
Or  waked  to  ecstacy  the  living  lyre: 
Some  village  Hampden  that,  with  dauntless  breast, 
The  pettj'-  tyrants  of  his  fields  withstood; 
Some  mute,  inglorious  Milton  here  may  rest; 
Some  Cromwell,  guiltless  of  his  country's  blood!" 

There  is  far  less  difference  between  the  capacity  than  the  industry 
of  men.  Place  all  mankind  from  infancy  in  a  similar  career  of  dis- 
cipline and  training,  give  them  the  same  facilities,  inspire  them 
with  a  common  zeal,  and  history,  no  longer  dealing  with  the  in- 
dividual, would  grow  to  be  generic  in  her  records.  Those  splendid 
instances  of  greatness  which  even  now  shine  forth  at  times  in  iso- 
lated grandeur,  would  lose  their  prominence  were  all  men  conscious 
of  the  latent  force  within  them,  and  by  that  consciousness  impelled 
to  act.  The  people  have  begun  to  realize  this  mighty  truth,  and 
the  spirit  of  the  age  is  prompting  them  to  universal  action.  Hence 
the  deeds  of  labor,  in  all  their  vast  diversity  of  form  and  conse- 
quence, are  growing  sacred  in  the  popular  regard,  diffusing  know- 


JOSEPH   W.    WINANS.  261 

ledge,  leveling  disparity,  filling  the  earth  with  miracles  of  art  and 
beauty.  Thus,  as  the  mass  becomes  more  active  and  intelligent, 
those  instances  decrease  where  genius  mounts  to  lofty  heights  above 
the  general  level.  A  single  star  upon  the  night  is  brightly  promi- 
nent, but  when  the  skies  are  gemmed  with  myriad  orbs,  although 
the  brightness  is  increased,  the  individuality  is  lost. 

From  the  grave  of  the  past  ages,  whose  multitudes  were  ignorant 
and  servile,  the  names  of  the  departed  great  shine  singly  out, 
through  the  surrounding  gloom,  like  torches  in  a  cemetery.  But 
now  this  princijjle  of  greatness  is  diffusive.  The  people  grow  gen- 
erically  greats-great  through  the  agency  of  labor — great  in  illus- 
trious deeds — great  in  the  work  of  handicraft  and  craft  of  thought. 
The  world  is  full  of  books,  the  channels  of  improvement  broaden; 
invention  racks  herself  for  new  discoveries,  and  science  rises  on  a 
bolder  wing,  until,  at  last,  by  the  general  absorption  of  individual 
distinction  in  the  fusion  of  the  mass,  is  produced  an  aggregated 
splendor  which  illuminates  the  world,  just  as  particles  of  light, 
though  separately  brilliant,  mingle  and  produce  the  all-pervading 
radiance  of  day.  And  thus,  though  fewer  instances  of  isolated 
greatness  stand  forth  from  the  throng  than  in  the  olden  time,  the 
world  is  far  more  luminous  with  energy,  intelligence,  and  action. 
This  general  development  and  cultivation  of  the  human  powers  con- 
firms the  proposition  that  the  diversity  between  the  abilities  of  in- 
dividuals is  comparatively  limited  in  its  extent.  Though  the  sea 
mounts  up  in  lofty  waves,  and  sinks  in  deep  abysses,  yet  these  sur- 
face inequalities  cause  little  variation  in  its  common  depth;  though 
the  earth  rears  itself  in  the  grand  magnificence  of  mountains,  and 
bows  down  in  the  low  humilities  of  vales,  yet,  if  you  stood  where 
Archimedes  sought  to  plant  his  lever,  and  gazed  upon  the  glorious 
orb  entire,  each  mountain  would  be  as  the  grain  of  sand,  and  each 
valley  as  the  pin-j)oint  scratch  upon  the  surface  of  a  school-house 
globe.  So,  though  human  nature  in  its  degeneracy  dwindles  down 
into  the  driveling  idiot,  and  in  its  elevation  soars  into  the  genius, 
whose  lofty  frontlet  strikes  the  stars,  yet  these  disparities  in  their 
variation  from  its  true  measure  of  equality,  are  but  what  billows  and 
abysses  are  unto  the  ocean,  what  vales  and  mountains  are  unto  the 
land.  For  the  great  princi^Dle  of  humanity,  which  underlies  man's 
universal  nature,  is  a  world  within  itself,  as  perfect  as  the  material 
orb  on  which  we  tread,  and  the  casual  deviations  from  the  common 
standard  of  capacity,  which  here  and  there  exist,  are  but  its  in- 
equalities. It  is  the  inactivity  of  the  slothful,  the  ignorance  of  the 
unlearned — not  the  want  of  natural  endowments — that  creates  the 
seeming  inequality  between  man  and  man. 

Again :  labor  is  needful  to  invigorate  the  frame  and  display  the 
inexliaustible  resources  of  the  mind.  The  idler  is  a  burthen  to 
society.  Without  aim  or  purpose  in  the  scale  of  being,  he  becomes 
entirely  useless,  wretched  and  degraded.  Apply  a  styptic  to  the 
wound,  and  blood  no  longer  flows;  subject  the  rivers  to  the  north 
wind's  breath,  and  their  currents  cease  to  run.  So  Indolence  con- 
geals and  stagnates  all  the  impulses  and  energies  of  human  nature. 


262  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Beneath  its  blighting  touch  the  emotions  of  the  heart  are  stifled,  the 
aspirations  of  the  spirit  quenched,  afiection  withers,  and  hope 
ceases  to  incite.  What  bitter  fruits  are  gathered  from  the  tree 
which  indolence  has  planted!  AVhat  melancholy  ivy  crowns  the 
walls  and  hollow  echoes  murmur  through  the  corridors  of  its  di- 
lapidated castle !  How  stealthily  decay  creeps  into  the  enclosure, 
and  thorns  and  brambles  overgrow  the  garden  of  the  sluggard! 
Idleness  has  been  termed  the  parent  of  many  vices.  It  is  more :  it 
is  the  j^rolific  sire  of  all  iniquity.  Dreary  is  the  doom  and  dark  the 
pathway  of  the  son  of  sloth.  Mark  you  the  conventional  idler,  that 
prominent  feature  of  society,  who  lounges  in  saloons,  and  haunts 
the  dens  of  dissipation,  and  prowls  around  the  purlieus  of  de- 
pravity; who  spends  his  time  in  doing  nothing,  like  some  scurvy 
politician,  and  quarters  on  the  provender  of  others — what  a  miser- 
able thing  he  stands  amid  the  din  and  turmoil  of  this  busy  world ! 
There  was  grandeur  in  the  fall  of  Lucifer,  but  his  decline  calls  forth 
no  sentiment  of  admiration  or  compassion.  It  matters  not  that  one 
be  high  in  station  or  of  gentle  blood,  for  rank  gives  no  immunity 
from  labor.  "What  right  has  yonder  lordling  to  riot  in  indulgence 
while  his  humbler  fellow  toileth  on?  "Was  it  for  this  that  God  made 
labor  blessed  and  its  burthen  sweet  to  all  his  creatures;  made  it 
their  duty  and  their  honor,  while  he  drones  through  unprofitable 
years,  consuming  the  industry  of  others,  producing  nothing  for 
himself;  making  vaunt  of  his  gentility,  yet  leaving  not  his  mark 
upon  the  age  ? 

*'  "When  Adam  delved  and  Eve  span, 
Where  was  then  the  gentleman?" 

Without  labor,  youth  is  degraded  to  the  basest  uses,  until  a 
career  of  reckless  dissipation  and  unscrupulous  depravity  plunges 
its  victim  in  an  early  grave;  without  labor,  manhood  is  precipitated 
upon  crimes  and  shames,  from  which  its  better  impulses  recoil,  and, 
like  a  wandering  star,  strays  into  the  darkness  of  eternal  night; 
without  labor,  age  itself  is  oftentimes  disquieted  and  tossed  upon  a 
thorny  pillow.  "  Nevertheless,"  saith  the  moralist,  "to  the  diligent, 
labor  bringeth  blessing;  the  thought  of  duty  sweeteneth  toil,  and 
travail  is  as  pleasure;  and  the  spirit  in  doing  good  hath  a  comfort 
that  is  not  for  the  idle;  the  hardship  is  transmuted  into  joy  by  the 
dear  alchemy  of  mercy.  Labor  is  good  for  a  man,  bracing  up  his 
energies  to  conquest;  and  without  it  life  is  dull,  the  man  perceiving 
himself  useless;  for  wearily  the  body  groaneth,  like  a  door  on  rusty 
hinges,  and  the  grasp  of  the  mind  is  weakened  as  the  talons  of  a 
caged  vulture." 

The  opulent  merchant  who  retires  from  a  long  life  of  toil  to 
enjoy  his  affluence  amid  the  voluptuous  indulgence  of  luxury  and 
ease,  soon  wearies  with  satiety,  and  longs  again  to  mingle  in  the 
stir  and  tumult  of  the  mart,  and  to  that  longing  clings  while  life 
endures.  So  the  worn  war-horse,  in  the  last  extreme  Of  life,  moves 
languid  through  his  pastures,  parted  from  the  trumpet's  sound,  but 
when  the  notes  of  distant  war  are  borne  upon  the  breeze,  he  rallies 


JOSEPH   W.    WINANS.  2^ 

all  his  energies,  and  bounding  madly  forward,  in  that  effort  dies. 
Each  noble  longing  in  our  nature  craves,  each  physical  propensity 
demands,  activity.  The  curse  of  idleness  is  a  sharper  stigma  than 
the  brand  of  Cain.  Go  to  the  ant,  thou  sluggard!  AVhile  Hannibal 
toiled  on,  the  gates  of  Rome  were  powerless  before  the  whii'lwind 
of  his  coming.  Lui'ed  from  his  hot  pursuit  by  the  seductive  bland- 
ishments of  Capua,  he  lost  the  empire  of  the  world.  Before  the 
resistless  march  of  Alexander  everything  gave  w^ay,  until  he  wept  at 
having  nothing  left  to  conquer;  yet,  suddenly,  in  the  very  vigor  of 
his  years  and  the  meridian  of  his  glor}%  the  fatal  revelries  of  Baby- 
lon swept  him  into  an  untimely,  ignominious  grave.  Thus,  while 
idleness  is  the  bane  of  life,  labor  is  the  antidote.  For  labor  is  pro- 
motive of  longevity.  The  great  men  of  the  world  live  on  through 
many  years.  How  venerable  are  its  philosophers,  its  statesmen,  its 
artificers,  its  scholars,  and  its  sages!  Nestor  ruled  over  three  gene- 
rations of  his  countrymen.  Solon,  the  great  lawgiver  of  old,  and 
those  distinguished  jurists  of  the  modern  school,  Grotius,  Mans- 
field, Marshall,  were  veterans,  whose  labors  lasted  with  their  lives. 
Socrates  was  the  wisest  of  the  Greeks,  Varro  the  most  learned  of 
the  Romans.  GoOthe  rises  stalwart  like  an  Ajax  in  the  ranks  of 
German  mind,  and  Brougham  shines  the  intellectual  demi-god  of 
Britain.  These  all  outran  in  their  allotted  span  the  term  of  three- 
score years,  and  will  realize  their  well-earned  tribute  through  the 
deathless  ages  of  renown. 

Look  to  the  lives  and  exploits  of  the  sons  of  toil  for  labor's 
grandest  eulogy.  With  indurated  frames  and  spirits  energized  by 
action,  serene  in  cheerfulness,  suj)reme  in  health,  they  fill  the  func- 
tions of  a  high  humanity,  however  lowly  or  exalted  be  their  station, 
and  pass  away  at  the  close  of  a  long  life  steeped  in  the  glory  of 
their  own  bright  deeds,  as  the  sun  goes  down  in  luminous  effulgence 
'neath  the  w^estern  wave.  They  find  no  hardship  in  endurance,  but 
realize  that  labor  is  its  own  reward.  Every  hour  of  application  is 
sweetened  by  the  consciousness  of  what  it  will  produce,  and  in  the 
thought  of  toil  endured  there  is  abundant  recompense.  The  artisan 
who  rears  a  stately  edifice  out  of  the  rude,  misshapen  heaps  of  wood 
and  stone  around  him,  transforming  them  by  the  spell  of  labor  into 
a  thing  of  usefulness  and  beauty,  is  nobler  than  a  conqueror.  As 
he  Avho  fashioned  it  stands  gazing  on  a  glorious  work  perfected,  an 
emanation  iixna  himself,  the  creature  of  his  hand,  his  heart  throbs 
with  a  livelier  emotion  of  delight  than  Caesar  when  a  crown  was 
woven  for  his  kingly  brow.  The  sculptor,  when  he  forces  out  his 
living  thought  from  the  reluctant  marble,  though  his  hand  be  heavy 
with  its  toil  and  his  brow  humid  with  its  travail,  thrills  with  a 
prouder  joy  than  he,  lord  of  a  thousand  statues,  who  moves 
superbly  through  his  galleries  and  contemplates  them  in  the  pride 
of  conscious  affluence. 

It  is  this  divine  propensity  of  labor  which  prompts  men  to  per- 
severe in  their  designs.  A  weak  or  faltering  spirit  is  disconcerted 
by  impediments.  But  perseverance  overcomes  all  obstacles.  It  is 
the  application  of  intense   determination  to  unceasing  effort.     It 


264  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

makes  tlie  niountain  come  unto  Mahomet.  Fixed  in  resolve,  it 
strag-gles  on,  though  "  hills  on  hills  and  Alps  on  Alps  arise"  before 
it,  and  higher,  higher  mounts  aloft  unto  its  purpose,  scaling  the 
dizzy  pinnacles  until  it  grasps  the  very  skies.  When  Tamerlane, 
despoiled  and  routed,  his  mighty  host  dispersed,  stole  to  the  shelter 
of  a  solitary  ruin  in  the  wilderness,  and  crouching  there  in  abject 
fear,  for  one  trembling  moment  gave  up  all  for  lost,  he  chanced  to 
see  a  spider  striving  to  connect  its  web  with  the  adjacent  wall.  For 
nine  and  fifty  times  the  patient  insect  struggled  vdth  its  vain  attempt, 
yet  each  successive  failure  proved  but  the  incentive  to  renewed  exer- 
tion. Such  fearful  resolution  in  a  creature  destitute  of  reason  roused 
the  torjoid  warrior  from  his  stupor,  and  v/hen,  with  its  sixtieth  at- 
tempt, that  insect  realized  success,  the  giant  rose  into  his  loftiest 
stature,  and  with  his  nerves  intensely  strung  to  action,  swore  never 
again  to  falter  in  a  purpose  or  to  know  a  fear.  And  forth  he  strode 
from  that  gray  ruin  and  that  quaint  monitor  within  it,  a  conqueror 
in  prov/ess  and  in  soul  a  king.  Asia  soon  trembled  with  the  shock 
of  his  resounding  arms,  and  nations  owned  him  lord. 

Such  are  the  triumphs  of  perseverance,  such  the  lessons  it  ad- 
ministers from  feeblest  agencies.  Our  daily  life  is  pregnant  ynch 
examples  of  what  can  be  achieved  by  those  who,  though  endowed 
with  limited  capacities,  devote  themselves  to  unremitting  toil  and 
flinch  not  from  their  purpose;  who  yearn  for  no  indulgence,  yield  to 
no  discouragement,  but,  heedless  of  the  claims  of  appetite,  the  long- 
ings of  desire,  cling  fixedly,  like  Sinbad's  old  man  of  the  mountain, 
unto  their  pursuit,  and  bend  the  force  of  circumstance  unto  the 
rigor  of  an  iron  will.  Such  men  accomplish  more,  far  more,  than 
he  who  flames  across  the  world's  horizon,  whose  name  rings,  trumpet- 
toned,  upon  the  voice  of  fame.  The  great  deeds  of  the  earth  are 
wrought  by  humble  agents,  working  out  obscurely  the  designs  of 
Providence,  v/hile  history  confines  her  feeble  and  imperfect  records 
to  the  doings  of  the  j)rominent  and  mighty.  Hov»^  seldom  are  her 
jDortraitures  of  nations  national,  how  rarely  do  her  records  realize 
the  verity  which  records  should  impart!  But  the  triumphs  of  labor, 
in  this  enlightened  era,  are  not  restrained  to  things  material  and 
mental :  they  gather  other  trophies  from  the  broad  fields  of  religion 
and  philanthropy.  In  every  quarter  of  the  globe  the  missionaries 
of  the  gospel  are  proclaiming  messages  of  mercy  to  benighted  men. 
Through  seemingly  insufferable  hardships  and  insurmountable  im- 
pediments, never  faltering  in  resolve  nor  flinching  from  the  face  of 
danger,  at  the  sacrifice  of  all  things,  oftentimes  of  life  itself,  they 
force  their  v^ray  among  barbarous  or  hostile  nations,  over  rugged 
mountains  and  through  burning  deserts,  piercing  into  climes  in- 
hospitable with  malaria  and  pestilence,  or  the  deadlier  scourge  of 
man's  unhallowed  rage,  bearing  aloft  in  their  consecrated  hands 
the  high  commission  of  their  Master,  and  millions  of  ever}' 
lineage  and  tongue,  the  scattered  descendants  of  one  great  pro- 
genitor, among  the  continents  and  through  the  islands  of  the  sea, 
are  now  learning  the  glad  tidings  of  salvation;  while  the  sacred 
fire  expires  upon  the  altar,  the  idol  tumbles  from  its  shrine,  and 


JOSEPH    W.    WINANS.  265 

the  impious  rites  of  sacrifice  and  maceration  cease  to  be  performed 
bj  pagan  hands. 

In  this  grand  pageant  Xavier  led  the  way.  His  iron  nerve 
flinched  not,  his  firm  lip  never  quivered,  nor  faltered  his  inexorable 
will:  he  did  not  shrink  from  toilings  superhuman,  from  dangers  un- 
exampled, from  abasements  such  as  mortal  man  has  never  borne 
before,  but  dead  to  every  yearning  of  his  nature,  crushing  under 
foot  all  passion  and  emotion,  forced  his  path  through  self-imposed 
privations  and  imimaginable  sufferings,  amid  every  vicissitude  of 
foruune,  at  one  time  the  idol,  at  another  the  scoff  of  the  multitude 
around  him,  until  seven  hundred  thousand  converts  sanctified  the 
name  and  perpetuated  the  glory  of  the  great  Apostle  of  the  Indies. 
Nor  are  the  labors  of  i:hilanthroj)y  much  less  conspicuous.  Apostles 
of  humanity  are  traversing  the  earth  and  piercing  every  zone  wherever 
affliction  is  in  need  of  solace,  ignorance  is  pining  for  instruction,  or 
destitution  clamors  for  rehef ;  seeking,  through  the  promptings  of 
an  unselfish  and  enlightened  charity,  to  establish  the  universal 
brotherhood  of  man  and  ameliorate  the  condition  of  the  race.  Trace 
Howard  through  his  pilgiimage.  See  him  shunning  the  haunts  of 
luxury,  spurning  the  halls  of  nobles,  to  visit  the  prisoner  in  his 
dungeon,  the  plague-stricken  in  his  lazaretto — rearing  cottages  for 
peasants  and  school-houses  for  gratuitous  instruction;  seconding  the 
impulses  of  a  heart  keenly  alive  to  every  human  impulse  with  the 
ofierings  of  a  hand  abundantly  enriched.  He  went  on  his  high 
mission  to  relievo  the  sufferings  and  soothe  the  sorrows  of  mankind. 
He  made  liis  bed  with  the  wretched  and  degi'aded,  and  paused  not 
in  his  luminous  but  melancholy  path  through  the  squalor  of  the 
prison-house  and  the  infection  of  the  pestilence,  until  contagion 
struck  him  with  its  blighting  fang,  and  stilled  the  pulse  of  that 
noble  heart  for  ever. 

And  she,  the  gloiy  of  her  sex,  who  still  skirts  the  lurid  track  of 
war,  a  ministering  angel  on  her  chosen  errand  of  benevolence  and 
good,  displaying  in  her  character  the  lofty  rirtue,  and  in  her  con- 
duct the  generous  devotion,  of  a  woman's  nature,  beaming  with 
tenderness  and  love,  she  whose  song  of  life,  like  that  of  the  night- 
ingale, whoso  name  she  bears,  is  sad  but  full  of  wondrous  music — 
honored  be  her  work  and  green  her  memory  for  ever!  What  shall 
be  said  of  those  relief  expeditions  which  have  wrought  so  much  for 
the  benefit  of  man  and  the  extension  of  discovery;  which  have 
opened  nevv^  pathways  of  the  sea  and  found  an  ever-heaving  ocean 
beyond  the  realms  of  circumpolar  ice  ?  What  of  those  bold  navi- 
gators vv^ho  have  made  the  circuit  of  the  earth  in  their  adventurous 
course,  at  one  time  lagging  with  an  idle  sail  beneath  the  burning 
sun  of  torrid  climes,  at  another  locked  up  in  dense  masses  of  im- 
penetrable ice,  or  buried  in  the  darkness  of  protracted  night;  who 
pursue  their  journeyings  through  perils  and  privations  into  un- 
known regions,  to  explore  what  still  continues  undiscovered  in  the 
formation  and  phenomena  of  this  material  globe? 

We  have  thus  wandered  through  the  labors  of  the  ancient  era 


266  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

and  down  the  modern  time.  We  have,  as  it  were,  strayed  through 
an  arbor  dense  at  first  with  foliage  and  oppressed  with  shade,  but 
continually  brightening  as  yre  journeyed  down  its  vista  towards  the 
clear  persj)ective  at  its  end.  Into  that  perspective  have  vv^e  now 
emerged.  It  is  the  glorious,  all-pervading,  all-achieving  present. 
Now,  labor  is  indeed  the  king!  Drawn  from  the  skies  by  Franklin's 
promethean  touch  the  lightning  has  been  yoked  by  Morse,  like  a 
tamed  courser,  to  the  thought-conducting  car.  Upon  one  continent, 
the  genius  of  Arkwright  played  to  comfort  millions  with  it3  useful 
skill;  upon  another,  Whitney  wrought  his  great  invention  to  augment 
beyond  compute  its  w^ealth  and  welfare.  Up  through  the  realms  of 
air  bounds  the  balloon,  down  through  the  ocean  depths  descends  the 
bell.  What  Watts  devised,  Fulton  and  his  successors  have  applied 
to  subtlest  uses,  until  distant  empires  clasp  each  other,  and  the  earth 
is  circled  and  the  cea  is  knitted  to  the  land  by  the  strange  mystery 
of  steam.  Through  the  Atlantic  depths  a  submarine  chain  cable  is 
advancing  to  unite  the  shores  of  America  and  Europe.  Across  v/ide 
oceans  the  affiliated  nations  stretch  their  hands  to  mingle  in  the 
grasp  of  fellowship,  as  the  colossal  forms  of  Miriam  and  the  Wan- 
dering Jew  appeared  to  clasp  each  other  in  the  gloaming,  although 
parted  by  a  sea. 

The  very  currents  of  the  air  and  ocean  have  been  jointly  made 
subservient  to  the  will  of  man  in  shortening  the  routes  of  naviga- 
tion; and  the  stars  that  blase  upon  his  breast,  and  the  emulous  dis- 
tinctions v/on  from  royal  hands,  attest  the  genius  of  Lieut.  Maury. 
In  shapelier  fabrics  than  of  old,  looms  the  architecture  of  the  sea, 
traced  in  new  forms  of  speed  and  beauty  by  the  shij)vmght's  nicer 
skill,  and  statelier  structures  rise  upon  the  land,  and  loftier  spires 
point  out  the  v/ay  to  Heaven,  wrought  by  the  myriad  sons  of  toil. 
The  press  wearies  with  its  efforts  for  the  spread  of  knowledge,  the 
heart  pants  with  its  throbbings  for  the  welfare  of  humanity. 
Throughout  the  ranks  of  universal  man,  where  he  still  darkles  in 
•the  savage  and  v/hero  he  shines  refulgent  in  the  sage,  the  work  of 
regeneration  goeth  on.  In  the  language  of  a  cotemporary:  "With- 
in the  last  twenty-five  years  all  the  principal  features  of  the  geo- 
graphy of  our  vast  interior  regions  have  been  accurately  determined; 
the  great  fields  of  Central  Asia  have  been  traversed  in  various  direc- 
tions, from  Bokhara  and  Oxus  to  the  Chinese  Wall;  the  half -known 
river  systems  of  South  America  have  been  surveyed;  the  icy  con- 
tinent around  the  southern  pole  has  been  discovered;  the  North- 
west passage,  the  igniis  fatiais  of  nearly  two  centuries,  is  at  last 
found;  the  Dead  Sea  is  stripped  of  its  fabulous  terrors;  the  course 
of  the  Niger  is  no  longer  a  myth,  and  the  sublime  secret  of  the  Nile 
is  about  wrested  from  his  keeping;  the  mountains  of  the  moon, 
sought  for  through  two  thousand  years,  have  been  beheld  by  a 
Caucasian  eye;  an  English  steamer  has  ascended  the  Chadda  to  the 
frontiers  of  the  great  kingdom  of  Borneo;  Leichart  and  Stuart  have 
penetrated  the  wilderness  of  Australia;  the  Russians  have  descended 
from  Irkoutsch  to  the  mouth  of  the  Amoor;  the  antiquated  walls  of 


JOSEPH   W.    WINANS.  '  267 

Chinese  prejudice  have  cracked  and  are  fast  tumbling  down;  and 
the  canvas  screens  which  surrounded  Japan  have  been  cut  bj  the 
sharp  edge  of  American  enterprise." 

Behold  this  lordly  pile,  the  city  of  your  home,  rich  in  its  fretted 
domes,  its  gorgeous  palaces  and  many  chambered  mansions,  rising 
like  an  exhalation  from  the  deep,  and  looming  gTandly  in  the  amber 
air!  Evoked  as  if  by  magic,  like  the  Palace  of  xiladdin;  its  marts 
crowded  with  the  merchandise  of  every  clime,  its  harbor  den3e  with 
the  navies  of  all  nations,  rivaling  old  Tyre  in  the  magnitude  of  its 
commerce,  and  illumining  the  western  continent  with  the  luster  of 
its  arts;  a  vast  community,  wherein  are  mingled  the  motley  denizens 
of  every  zone,  and  from  which  emanate  financial  influences  that  per- 
vade the  globe;  what  a  stupendous  monument  it  is,  and  will  be  to 
all  future  time  of  the  omnipotence  of  labor!  A  spiritual  world  is 
bursting  on  the  sense,  and  though  its  revelations  are  steeped  in  the 
marvellous  and  the  incredible,  yet  human  foresight  dares  not  proph- 
esy what  wonders  of  the  unseen  void  are  yet  to  be  explored  by  man. 
If  Newton,  while  he  lived,  believed  himself  a  mere  gatherer  of  shells 
upon  the  shore  of  the  ocean  of  intelligence,  a  bolder  generation  has 
arisen  which  quits  that  shore,  and  fearlessly  sails  forth  upon  that 
sea,  and  'mid  the  widely  opening  wonders  of  the  view,  scans  with 
a  clearer  eye  the  mysteries  of  being,  as  it  speeds  along  to  its  eternal 
bourne.  But  here  our  task  must  close.  The  word  of  God,  the  voice 
of  nature,  and  the  monitor  within  us,  all  unite  in  uttering  this  man- 
date unto  man:  "VYork  while  you  may,  with  all  your  energies,  "for 
the  night  cometh  soon  in  which  no  man  can  work."  In  whatever 
sphere  youi*  lot  is  cast,  see  to  it  that  you  do  your  duty  faithfully  and 
well.  However  subordinate  your  station,  it  is  honorable  if  you  dig- 
nify it  by  the  application  of  your  industry,  and  adorn  it  with  the 
luster  of  your  virtues. 

"  Honor  and  shame  from  no  condition  rise, 
Act  well  your  part,  in  that  the  honor  lies." 

There  is  no  condition  so  subsendent,  none  so  exalted,  as  to  be 
exempt  from  its  responsibilities,  which  can  no  more  be  shunned 
with  honor  than  the  sentinel  in  the  hour  of  danger  can  desert  his 
post,  or  the  monarch  sacrifice  the  welfare  of  his  people.  Action  is 
the  watchword,  and  progress  the  destiny  of  man.  The  more  stren- 
uously you  labor,  the  more  you  magnify  your  powers  and  exalt  your 
station.  No  object  in  nature  is  so  insignificant  as  to  be  without  a 
function.  And  shall  man,  the  grandest  v/ork  of  all,  degenerate  into 
the  meanest;  become  a  useless  thing,  v^^hereall  ^ras  piu-posed  to  be 
useful,  and  mar  the  harmony  of  order  by  the  discord  of  inaction  ? 
No !  It  were  as  easy  to  suspend  the  motion  of  a  planet,  without 
hurling  it  in  ruin  from  its  sphere,  as  for  man  without  continuous 
effort  to  achieve  his  destiny.  This  truth  has  burst  like  a  meteor 
upon  the  nations.  It  startles  and  illumines.  Everywhere,  through 
every  channel,  among  every  people,  far  and  wide  over  the  surface 
of  this  ponderous  globe,  are  the  claims  of  labor  vindicated  and  en- 
nobled.    A  stupendous  exposition,  convened  in  annual  succession, 


2G8  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

at  London  and  New  York,  and  Paris,  has  brought  together,  from 
every  land,  the  industry,  resources,  and  invention  of  the  world. 

There,  at  that  grand  high  carnival  of  labor,  the  nations  mingle 
in  a  common  throng  to  bend  the  suppliant  knee  before  its  throne. 
Labor  is  king!  The  multitude  are  shaking  off  the  sloth  of  ages. 
The  song  of  labor  hath  more  fascination  than  the  strain  the  syren 
sung.  This  glorious  millenium  is  working  out  redemption  for  man- 
kind, from  the  thrall  of  degradation  and  oppression.  The  Ishmael- 
ite  shall  soon  be  rescued  from  the  curse  of  Hagar's  offspring.  No 
longer  shall  the  Tartar  roam  his  boundless  steppes  inactive,  nor  the 
Arab  prosecute  his  roving  and  nomadic  life.  The  tawny  Indian  on 
the  banks  of  the  Euphrates,  and  the  burnished  Ethiop,  shall  burst 
the  fetters  of  their  mental  bondage,  and  human  nature  everywhere, 
through  all  its  ranks  and  ranges  of  condition,  its  varieties  of  hue 
and  shade,  its  grades  of  elevation  and  debasement,  its  diversity  of 
tribes  and  races,  shall  stand  forth  redeemed  in  the  golden  effulgence 
of  that  morn  which  is  dawning  on  the  world's  long  night  of  lethargy 
and  error.  For  this  grand  consummation  be  it  ours  to  strive  with 
unremitting  toil,  and  haply  even  we  may  have  our  names  emblazoned 
on  the  scroll  of  fame. 


MUNDUS. 

BY  JOSEPH  W.  WINANS. 
Quid  rides?— mutato nomine,  de  te  fdbula  narratur. 

"When  Juvenal  forsook  his  pen; 

That  stern,  satiric  teacher 
Left  half  untold  the  crimes  of  men— 

The  guilt  of  human  nature. 

From  shores  by  Behring's  waters  wet, 

To  Ind's  remotest  nation, 
A  soulless,  sordid,  selfish  set, 

Make  up  Earth's  population. 

The  troublous  tribes  of  men  wiE  cease 

From  rapine,  rage,  and  riot; 
When  Hyrcan  tigers  covet  peace, 

And  Russian  wolves  are  quiet. 

Gigantic  wi'ongs,  long  unrestrained, 
Have  grown  completely  chronic; 

As  Sardian  herbs  the  features  trained 
Into  a  scowl  sardonic 

War  spreads  its  desolating  glare 
From  columns  densely  serried; 

Fierce  as  the  flame  that  flashes  where 
Euceladus  lies  buried. 


JOSEPH    W.    WINANS. 


Intestine  fetids,  with  horror  nfe, 

Holil  bloody  saturnalia ; 
Till  Freedom  yields  to  Civil  strife, 

As  Pompey  to  Pharsaha. 

The  code  of  morals  that  prevails 

Amid  the  social  chaos, 
■Would  shame  the  conscious  Paphian  vales, 

And  flush  the  cheek  of  Lais. 

Unhallowed  lust  drew  Villiers'  sword — 

And  gallants  still  are  ready 
To  hie  from  duel  with  the  lord, 

To  duet  with  the  hidy. 

Though  Virtue,  with  bold  deeds  and  words, 

Strives  good  from  ill  to  sever; 
The  poisoned  robe  of  Nessus  girds 

Her  generous  endeavor. 

'T  would  need  a  fancy  quaint  in  style, 

\ct  gloomier  than  Dante's, 
To  r>aint  the  orgies  that  beguile 

Our  now-a-day  Bacchantes. 

Contention,  schism,  and  turmoil, 

Arc  everywhere  in  fashion; 
For  Geysers'  springs  less  madly  boil, 
Than  boiling  human  passion. 

'T  were  easier  task  to  curb  misnile 

From  tyranny  and  duress. 
Than  change  the  rigid  Zeno's  school 

To  that  of  Epicurus. 

Lean  penury,  by  bloated  wealth 
Is  rudely  spurned  and  thvrarted: 

While  Lazarus  creeps  on  by  stealth, 
Proud  Dives'  nod  is  courted. 

Corruption  glimmers  through  the  damp 
Of  pride,  and  place,  and  station; 

Like  false  lights  through  the  Dismal  Swampr 
In  fetid  exhalation. 

Midst  revel,  rout,  and  festal  glee, 

All  manhood  is  Ibrgotten; 
As  midst  the  train  of  Omphule 

Great  Hercules  spun  cotton. 

The  Car  of  State,  through  check  and  clog, 

Ghdes  with  as  free  a  motion. 
As  ships  through  the  Sirbonian  bog. 

Or  Pharoah's  hosts  through  ocean. 

Those  waters  in  which  statesmen  slake 
Their  thirst  for  greed  and  glory. 

Are  fouler  than  the  Stygian  Lake, 
Or  Pontine     Marsh  of  story. 

How  dearly  valued  matters  not; 

The  friendships  that  we  cherish — 
?also  as  the  perjured  Sinon's  plot — 

In  disappointment  perish. 


269 


270  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE   PACIFIC. 


Where  faith  and  truth  should  greenly  gi'ow, 
The  heart  yields,  from  its  stubble, 

Such  harvests  only  as  did  flow 
From  England's  South  Sea  Bubble. 

Unstinted  bounties  still  inspire 

A  gratitude  as  glowing, 
As  when  fond  Scylla  slew  her  sire 

To  speed  her  dainty  wooing. 

More  victims  to  the  crime  of  Cain, 

Give  desperate  solution, 
Thau  gi-aced  the  tumbril  and  the  wain 

Of  Danton's  revolution. 

Like  Joseph's  brethren,  brothers  strive 

The  ties  of  blood  to  foster: 
So  once  the  mild  Cambyses  strove; 

So  strove  the  gentle  Gloster. 

A  wanton  age  is  ''Christian''  claimed, 

By  catachrese  as  glaring. 
As  erst  the  Fates  were  "  Sparers''  named, 

Because  they  were  unsparing. 

What  though  a  meed  of  fame  is  due 

To  Man's  exalted  mission; 
The  blandishments  of  sense  subdue 

His  loftiest  ambition. 

Thus  Babylon,  with  festive  charms. 

Entangled  Alexander; 
Thus  Capuau  arts,  not  Roman  arms, 

Made  Hannibal  surrender. 

Pale  Justice  sits,  in  ermined  state, 

With  not  a  stain  upon  her; 
Impartial,  and  immaculate 

As  Jeffreys'  spotless  honor. 

Without  delay  the  Law  moves  on 

To  its  completed  issue : 
Penelope  thus  nimbly  spun 

Her  web  of  varied  tissue. 

While  dissolute  desires  encroach 

On  habits  more  primeval; 
What  once  was  Noah's  grave  reproach, 

Is  now  a  sanctioned  evil. 

From  farthest  East  to  utmost  West; 

From  dwarf  to  giant's  stature, 
Cinme  curdles  in  the  human  breast; 

Vice  venoms  human  nature. 


GEORGE  L.  WOODS. 

JBY   pALVIN    p   yVlcpONALD. 


GOVERNOR  Woods  is  one  of  the  most  distinctive  repre- 
sentative men  in  the  rising  commonwealth  of 
Oregon.  Indeed,  he  may  be  regarded  as  the  most  noted 
and  conspicuous  among  the  many  really  brilliant  and 
able  men  who  give  character  to  that  State,  possessing 
that  wonderful  sorcery  of  speech  which  Nature  bestows 
on  but  few  of  her  children,  and  w^hich  can  so  easily  ad- 
vance its  possessor  to  renown.  Whatever  be  his  other 
qualifications,  Governor  Woods  is  unquestionably  the 
most  eloquent  orator  now  living  in  the  Pacific  States, 
and  as  such  is  entitled  to  a  conspicuous  place  among  the 
representative  men  of  the  nation. 

George  Lemuel  Woods,  the  present  Governor  of 
Oregon,  was  born  in  Boone  county,  Missouri,  July  30th, 
1832.  He  is  of  Scottish  descent,  his  ancestors  having  come 
over  to  this  country  in  the  latter  part  of  the  seventeenth 
century  and  settled  in  Virginia.  His  father  was  born  in 
Kentucky ;  his  mother  in  Tennessee :  the  former  removed 
to  Missouri,  and  settled  there  in  1808.  The  subject  of 
these  remarks  is  the  second  of  four  sons,  two  of  whom  are 
dead.  He  removed  from  Missouri  to  the  Territory  of 
Oregon  in  1847,  w^ien  only  fifteen  years  old,  and  has  re- 
sided there  ever  since,  much  of  the  time  in  w4iat  is  known 
as  Eastern  Oregon,  that  portion  of  the  State  lying  east  of 
the  Cascade  mountains.     In  April,  1852,  he  was  married, 


272  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

and  began  life  without  means,  relying  wholly  upon  his 
own  exertions;  taking  a  homestead  upon  unimproved 
Government  lands,  which  he  cultivated  by  his  own  labor, 
building  houses  and  barns,  fencing  and  plowing,  after  the 
manner  of  settlers  on  the  border. 

In  1856,  having  determined  to  enter  a  different  sphere 
in  life,  with  a  family  to  be  supported,  and  only  a  limited 
common-school  education,  young  Woods  sold  his  property 
and  entered  school,  intending  to  prepare  himself  for  the 
study  of  the  law.  and  continued  his  earnest  and  successful 
studies  until  his  means  were  exhausted.  Having  thus 
prosecuted  his  preparatory  studies  under  difficulties,  he 
purchased  a  small  law  library :  paid  for  it  by  working  at  a 
carpenter's  bench  during  the  day;  and  studied  its  con- 
tents by  night,  until  ready  to  be  admitted  to  practice.  Ilis 
success  at  the  bar  corresponded  with  his  indomitable 
resolution,  and  he  soon  rose  to  distinction  in  his  district. 

In  July,  1863,  Gov.  Woods'  public  life  commenced 
by  his  appointment  to  the  Judgeship  of  Wasco  county, 
in  which  capacity  he  served  a  year  with  satisfaction  to  the 
community  and  honor  to  himself.  In  March,  1864,  he 
was  nominated  on  the  Union  Presidential  Electoral  ticket, 
and  took  an  active  part  in  that  campaign,  making  known 
the  remarkable  powers  as  a  popular  orator  and  stump 
speaker  which  have  since  given  him  a  national  distinction. 
His  boldness  and  eloquence  of  speech  made  him  the 
particular  mark  for  his  political  adversaries  in  that  State, 
where  election  campaigns  are  conducted  with  great  vigor 
and  in  the  true  Western  style.  In  Oregon,  opponents, 
whether  candidates  or  campaigners,  travel  together,  meet 
face  to  face,  and  discuss  the  issues  from  hand  to  hand, 
sometimes  before  vast  throngs ;  and  for  that  sort  of  discus- 
sion Woods  was  admirably  prepared  through  his  rapid  flow 
of  language,  ready  wit,  and  graceful  conduct  as  a  speaker. 
In  that  memorable  campaign,  the  Democracy  selected  the 
Hon.  Aaron  E.  Wait,  late  Chief  Justice  of  the  State,  and 
a  gentleman  of  commanding  abilities,  while  the  Union 
party  chose  the  young  and  then  unknown  George  L.  Woods 
as  their  champion.  The  conflict  was  fierce  and  exciting, 
and  Wait  was  vanquished  at  every  encounter. 


GEORGE   L.    WOODS.  273 

Two  years  after,  Woods  was  appointed,  by  the  Presi- 
dent, Associate  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Idaho ; 
but  before  the  arrival  of  his  commission,  he  was  nominated 
for  Governor  by  the  Union  State  convention  of  Oregon. 
The  opposing  candidate  on  the  Democratic  side  was  the 
Hon.  James  L.  Kelly,  an  old  and  experienced  politician, 
and  an  eminent  lawyer.  Again  young  Woods  had  a 
foeman  worthy  of  his  steel;  the  struggle  was  the  most 
exciting  in  the  history  of  Oregon  politics,  and  occurred 
just  at  the  time  of  President  Johnson's  rupture  with 
his  party,  and  when  the  whole  country  was  in  a  state  of 
unusual  excitement.  The  conflict  between  the  rival 
champions  was  resolute  and  deadly  beyond  all  precedent ; 
but,  as  in  the  previous  campaign,  and  notwithstanding 
the  formidable  character  of  his  adversary,  Woods  was 
equal  to  the  great  occasion,  discomfited  his  opponent  at 
every  turn,  and  was  elected. 

During  the  gubernatorial  campaign  in  California,  in 
1867,  the  Republican  State  Central  Committee  invited 
Gov.  Woods  to  come  to  their  assistance ;  and  although  in 
feeble  health,  he  responded  at  once,  traveled  and  labored 
incessantly,  making  thirty  speeches  in  thirty-five  consecu- 
tive nights,  of  which  twenty-six  were  in  the  open  air  and 
before  immense  audiences.  His  popularity  was  every- 
where established;  no  public  speaker  in  that  State  ever 
created  greater  enthusiasm,  or  won  brighter  laurels.  His 
speech  in  the  great  Union  Hall  in  San  Francisco  was  con- 
sidered one  of  the  most  excellent  and  powerful  ever 
heard  in  that  city.  It  is  true  that  on  account  of  an 
unfortunate  division,  his  party  was  defeated;  but  it  is 
believed  that  the  enthusiasm  created  by  the  eloquent 
Oregonian,  as  much  as  any  other  cause,  saved  the  Re- 
publican party  of  California  from  utter  demoralization 
through  division  and  disaster. 

In  the  winter  of  1868,  at  the  solicitation  of  the 
Republican  State  Central  Committees  of  Kew  Hampshire 
and  Connecticut,  Gov.  Woods  went  to  the  East  and  as- 
sisted in  canvassing  those  States.  His  success  and  popu- 
larity were  as  great  in  classic  New  England  as  they  had 
been  in  the  distant  west  of  Oregon  and  California.  While 
18 


274  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

more  than  fifty  of  the  most  distinguished  orators  and 
stump-speakers  of  the  nation  took  part  in  that  exciting 
and  desperate  canvass,  the  leading  journals  of  those 
States  referred  to  the  Oregonian  as  being  the  most  elo- 
quent and  brilliant  of  them  all ;  and  through  such  grave 
testimony,  and  in  the  presence  of  such  competition,  it  was 
there  demonstrated  that  his  fame  and  popularity  are  not 
things  belonging  only  in  the  Far  West. 

In  person,  Gov.  Woods  is  tall,  graceful,  and  command- 
ing, with  a  handsome,  cheerful  face,  which  is  set  off  by  a 
full,  flowing  beard,  and  manifesting  the  utmost  mental 
activity.  He  is  one  of  those  positive  and  magnetic  men 
who  draw  around  them  a  great  number  of  intimate  and 
devoted  friends,  and  possess  about  an  equal  mumber  of 
very  decided  enemies;  but,  in  his  case,  these  last  are  the 
result  of  political  antagonism.  His  political  adversaries 
in  Oregon  regard  him  as  their  most  dangerous  and  de- 
structive foe,  and  on  the  other  hand,  his  political  friends 
consider  him  their  most  steadfast  and  indomitable  cham- 
pion, who  never  loses  a  battle.  His  manner  of  speaking 
is  rapid,  but  distinct  and  impressive,  never  using  long  or 
high-sounding  words  or  indulging  in  any  extravagance  or 
impropriety  of  metaphor.  He  seems  to  depend  on  the 
natural  forces  of  ideas  rather  than  upon  the  sonorous- 
ness of  words ;  and  although  never  written,  unless  by  some 
very  swift  reporter  at  the  time  of  their  delivery,  his 
speeches  would  be  considered  well  adapted  to  the  most 
refined  of  lecture-rooms.  Although  they  may  be  at  times 
insupportably  severe,  his  remarks  are  never  coarse  or 
personally  offensive.  Perhaps  no  American  orator  is 
capable  of  a  quicker  or  keener  retort,  but  it  is  a  cut  from 
a  rapier,  rather  than  a  stroke  with  a  bludgeon.  This 
peculiar  style  of  political  fence  is  one  of  Woods'  strongest 
points,  and  is  an  essential  of  popular  stump  speaking  in 
Oregon,  where  political  meetings  are  actually  debates 
before  both  sides,  of  the  question,  and  where  the  orator 
is  subject  to  frequent  interruptions  by  his  opponent  or  by 
some  questioner  in  the  audience.  Such  a  thing  as  a  set 
speech  at  a  political  meeting  in  that  State  would  be  one 
of  the  most  grotesque  of  absurdities,  and  an  orator  with- 


GEORGE   L.    WOODS.  275 

out  presence  of  mind  and  the  capacity  to  turn  an  unex- 
pected question  to  good  account,  would  be  a  gentleman 
to  be  pitied  and  a  person  suitable  for  immediate  emigra- 
tion. Notwithstanding  his  rapid  utterance,  and  their 
sometimes  great  length,  Woods'  speeches  cannot  be  called 
dijffuse  in  style;  on  the  contrary,  they  seem  to  be  each 
an  exhaustive  argument — an  oration  complete  in  all  its 
parts,  with  a  beginning,  a  middle  and  an  ending,  and  often 
containing  passages  of  lofty  and  surprising  beauty,  but 
never  extending  to  empty  declamation  or  the  transgres- 
sion of  rhetorical  laws. 

The  writer  of  this  has  heard  Gov.  Woods  many  times 
both  in  California  and  Oregon,  and  is  of  opinion  that  as 
a  popular  orator,  he  is  the  most  brilliant  and  effective  now 
living  in  either  of  those  States.  As  an  orator,  as  a  patriot, 
citizen,  and  man,  he  is  entitled  to  a  high  place,  not  only 
among  the  representative  men  of  the  Pacific,  but  of  the 
whole  country.  The  distinction  which  he  has  attained 
under  great  disadvantages  at  home,  he  is  capable  of  main- 
taing  anywhere  in  the  Republic ;  and  if  life  and  circum- 
stances permit,  his  friends  may  hope  to  see  him  in  a 
position  as  nationally  distinctive  as  that  is  individual  and 
distinguished  which  he  now  bears  to  his  own  State. 


FRANK  TILFORD, 

^Y    THE    pDITOR 


FRANK  TiLFORD  is  of  Scotch-Irish  descent,  and  a  native  of 
Lexington,  Kentucky.  In  the  year  1745,  a  remote 
ancestor,  John  Tilford,  emigrated  with  his  family  from  the 
North  of  Ireland  and  settled  in  the  valley  of  the  Shenan- 
doah. The  descendants  of  this  family  are  now  scattered 
through  the  Western  States.  They  belong  to  that  hardy 
race  of  pioneers,  who,  after  driving  the  Indian  tribes 
from  their  hunting  grounds  in  the  Mississippi  Valley, 
laid  well  and  deep  in  their  wilderness  homes  the  founda- 
tions of  a  free  government. 

In  the  spring  of  the  year  1849,  Frank  Tilford,  then 
twenty- seven  years  of  age,  with  a  small  party  of  youthful 
adventurers,  started  overland  for  the  Pacific.  He  arrived 
in  California  in  August  of  that  year ,  and  from  that  time 
until  now  has  resided  on  the  Pacific  coast. 

In  the  early  days  of  San  Francisco,  when  the  place  was 
a  Pueblo,  Mr.  Tilford  was  a  member  of  the  Ayuntami- 
ENTO,  and  in  that  capacity  contributed  largely  and  bene- 
ficially to  the  development  of  the  future  city.  The  cause 
of  education  received  from  him  earnest  attention,  and 
to  his  exertions  we  owe  the  first  endowment  ever  bestow- 
ed upon  a  public  school  in  San  Francisco.  He  endeavored, 
although  ineffectually,  to  procure  an  appropriation  of 
some  of  the  public  lands  belonging  to  the  corporation  to 
the  establishment  of  a  College  of  the  Pacific.  Had  the 
scheme  succeeded,  we  might,  years  ago,  have  had  on  this 
coast  a  University  richly  endowed  and  ranking  with  the 


278  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

noblest  educational  institutions  of  the  land.  At  that 
time,  unfortunately,  a  large  majority  of  our  people  lived 
only  for  and  in  the  immediate  present ;  few  either  appre- 
ciated or  cared  for  the  magnificent  future  which  awaited 
their  adopted  State ;  and  the  inevitable  result  of  such  in- 
difference was  the  failure  of  all  propositions  of  a  public 
character,  which  did  not  promise  a  speedy  remunerative 
return  to  the  community. 

In  May,  1850,  Mr.  Tilford  was  elected  Recorder,  or 
Criminal  Judge,  of  San  Francisco.  He  held  the  position 
for  one  year.  During  his  term  of  office,  San  Francisco 
was  noted  for  the  fierce  controversies  which  prevailed  in 
regard  to  the  title  and  possession  of  the  lands  within  her 
limits.  These  conflicts,  commencing  in  acts  of  lawless- 
ness, ended,  too  often,  in  sanguinary  violence,  and  became, 
therefore,  the  subjects  of  investigation  in  the  criminal 
courts.  In  all  such  cases  the  sympathies  of  the  Judge 
were  with  the  actual  and  honest  occupant,  and  the  law 
was  administered  to  protect  him  against  the  aggressions 
of  trespassers  who  sought  to  obtain  possession  without 
the  shadow  of  legal  title  or  equitable  claim.  The  firm 
yet  just  course  pursued  by  Recorder  Tilford  in  these 
troublesome  disputes,  won  for  him  the  esteem  and  regard 
of  all  well-disposed  citizens.  His  re-election  to  the 
same  position,  it  was  conceded,  was  certain,  had  he  been 
a  candidate.  It  so  happened,  however,  that  the  Demo- 
cratic party  placed  Judge  Tilford  before  the  people  as  their 
candidate  for  Mayor  at  the  municipal  election  in  April, 
1851.  The  nomination  was  made  against  the  earnest, 
openly-expressed  wishes  of  the  candidate,  and  finally  ac- 
cepted with  great  reluctance.  The  contest  was  animated, 
and  rendered  more  interesting  as  being  the  first  to  occur 
in  California  on  strict  partisan  issues.  The  Whig  party, 
then,  for  the  first  time,  organized,  and  under  the  leader- 
ship of  T.  Butler  King,  collector  of  the  port,  achieved  the 
most  brilliant,  and  almost  the  only  victory,  which  ever 
rewarded  its  expiring  efforts  in  California.  The  average 
majority  against  the  Democratic  ticket  was  not  less  than 
one  thousand,  while  the  candidate  for  the  mayoralty  was 
defeated  by  only  four  hundred  votes. 


FRANK   TILFORD.  2Y9 

Shortly  after  the  election,  Judge  Tilford  formed  a 
law  partnership  with  R.  A.  Lockwood  and  Edmund  Ran- 
dolph, two  gentlemen  of  commanding  abilities,  now  de- 
ceased. This  firm  instituted  a  suit  which  created  intense 
and  general  excitement — Metcalf  vs.  Argenti  and  others — 
the  cause  cMre  of  that  day.  The  plaintiff  complained  of 
a  trespass  committed  by  the  defendants  in  entering  his 
house  and  searching  the  premises.  They  (the  defend- 
ants) were  members  of  the  Vigilance  Committee  of  1851. 
The  whole  case  involved  the  legality  and  propriety  of  the 
action  of  the  Committee.  Plaintiff  laid  his  damages  at 
fifty  thousand  dollars.  There  were  two  trials  of  this  cause, 
but  the  jury,  on  both  occasions,  were  unable  to  agree 
upon  a  verdict. 

In  the  summer  of  1851,  Judge  Tilford  visited  Oregon 
and  remained  some  five  months  in  Portland,  where  he 
practiced  law  with  considerable  success.  Feeling,  at  the 
end  of  that  short  period,  that  he  was  out  of  the  pale  of 
civilization — Oregon  being  but  a  dreary  abiding  place 
eighteen  years  ago — he  returned  to  San  Francisco  early 
in  1852,  and  resumed  the  practice.  He  obtained  a  high 
reputation  at  the  bar,  but  principally  as  a  criminal  lawyer. 

From  1852  to  1856,  during  which  time  Judge  Tilford 
was  practicing  law,  the  San  Francisco  bar  numbered  among 
its  criminal  lawyers,  Col.  Baker,  Gov.  Smith  of  Virginia, 
Bailie  Peyton,  Gov.  Foote,  Edward  F.  Marshall,  Col. 
James,  and  Harry  Byrne,  now,  as  then,  District  Attorney 
of  San  Francisco. 

In  1854,  he  was  nominated  by  the  Democracy  for 
Judge  of  the  Superior  Court  of  San  Francisco.  In  that 
3'ear  the  Native  American  party  first  appeared  in  Califor- 
nia as  a  distinct  political  organization.  '^Towering  in  its 
pride  of  place,"  it  swept  all  before  it  and  succeeded  in 
electing  every  one  of  its  nominees.  The  Whig  party  was 
crushed  out  of  existence.  The  Democracy  held  together, 
and  although  defeated,  were  not  demoralized. 

In  1855,  Judge  Tilford  received  the  compliment  of 
the  nomination,  unanimously  tendered  him  by  the  county 
convention  of  his  party,  for  State  Senator.  He  took  the 
field  a§[ainst  the  enemy,  before  whose  power  he  had  fallen 


280  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN  OF  THE   PACIFIC. 

the  previous  year,  and  at  the  fall  election  was  chosen  by 
a  majority  of  twenty-five  hundred  votes. 

The  seventh  session  of  the  California  legislature  was 
one  of  unusual  interest  to  the  political  parties  of  the 
State.  The  Native  American  party  had  been  successful 
at  the  State  election  and  returned  a  majority  of  the  legis- 
lature. In  the  assembly  they  had  the  decided  control, 
and  in  the  senate,  one  majority.  The  first  question  which 
arose  was  in  reference  to  a  joint  convention  to  elect  a 
United  States  Senator  to  succeed  Wm.  M.  Gwin,  whose 
term  had  expired.  The  Democrats  opposed  the  conven- 
tion and  favored  the  postponement  of  the  election.  Sen- 
ator Tilford  made  the  only  speech  on  the  Democratic 
side ;  taking  the  ground  that  the  State  election  had  turned 
on  local  and  personal  issues;  was  no  just  indication  of 
the  popular  judgment,  and  that  it  would  be  impolitic, 
if  not  disastrous  to  the  public  interests,  to  place  in  the 
Senate  of  the  United  States  the  representative  of  a  fac- 
tion which  had  no  national  existence,  and  whose  career 
was  destined  to  a  speedy  termination.  This  speech  was 
published  in  all  the  Democratic  journals  of  the  State,  and 
was  generally  accepted  as  defining  the  attitude  of  the 
Democracy. 

The  vote  was  taken  on  the  motion  to  indefinitely  post- 
pone the  assembly  resolution  in  favor  of  a  joint  conven- 
tion, and  the  motion  was  carried — Hon.  Wilson  Flint 
acting  with  the  Democratic  members.  The  people  of  the 
State,  at  the  election  which  took  place  in  the  fall  of  1856, 
sustained  the  course  pursued  by  a  majority  of  the  senate. 

Another  debate  of  a  political  character  occurred  in  the 
senate,  important  as,  in  part,  the  cause  and  precursor  of 
the  fall  of  the  Native  American  party  in  California.  The 
assembly,  in  which  that  party  had  a  large  majority,  as 
stated,  had  passed  a  resolution  condemning  the  election 
of  Hon.  N.  P.  Banks  to  the  position  of  Speaker  of  the 
House  of  Representatives  at  Washington,  for  the  reason, 
as  alleged,  that  he  was  'Hhe  exponent  of  sectional  ideas 
and  principles  diametrically  opposed  to  the  spirit  of  the 
Constitution  of  the  United  States."  When  this  resolu- 
tion came  to  the  senate,  the  Native  American  members. 


FRANK   TILFORD.  281 

after  caucus  held,  unwilling  to  pass,  yet  hardly  prepared 
to  oppose,  resolved  on  tabling  it.  The  discussion  which 
arose  was  the  most  interesting  and  exciting  which,  up  to 
that  period,  had  occurred  in  the  California  Legislature. 
Hawks,  Senator  from  San  Francisco,  and  the  eloquent 
Ferguson  of  Sacramento,  favored  the  tabling  of  the  reso- 
lution. Senators  Mandeville  and  Tilford  urged  its  pas- 
sage. The  motion  to  table  the  resolution  was  carried  by  a 
clear  vote ;  but  in  the  discussion  which  preceded  the  final 
vote,  were  sown  the  seeds  of  the  ultimate  dissolution  of 
the  Native  American  party  in  the  State.  Upon  the  fall 
of  that  party,  a  large  number  transferred  allegiance  to 
the  victorious  enemy,  while  another  very  considerable 
element  united  with  the  N'ational  Republican  party,  then 
about  organizing.  The  speech  of  Judge  Tilford  on  this 
resolution  was  ordered  to  be  published  by  the  Demo- 
cratic members  of  the  legislature.  A  comparison  will 
show  that  this  speech  embodied  the  views,  in  almost  the 
identical  language,  afterwards  set  forth  in  the  platform 
adopted  by  the  convention  which  at  Cincinnati  nomina- 
ted James  Buchanan  for  the  Presidency. 

While  a  senator  from  San  Francisco,  Mr.  Tilford  was 
a  member  of  the  judiciary  committee,  and  during  the  lat- 
ter portion  of  his  term  was  chairman  of  the  same — a  po- 
sition which  gave  him  considerable  control  in  the  passage 
and  defeat  of  bills.  No  little  credit  is  due  to  him  for  re- 
vising and  preparing  amendments  to  the  criminal  law  of 
the  State.  He  reported  two  bills  for  that  prupose.  which 
passed  the  senate,  and,  with  some  slight  alteration  from 
the  assembly,  became  law.  Among  other  features  in  these 
bills,  whipping  for  petit  larceny,  and  the  death  penalty  at 
the  discretion  of  the  jury  in  cases  of  robbery  and  grand 
larceny,  were  abolished;  the  attempt  to  commit  a  crime 
was  made  punishable,  and  degrees  in  murder  and  other 
offences  were  introduced  and  defined.  The  views  of  the 
author  of  these  measures  were  set  forth  in  a  speech  on 
crimes  and  punishments,  and  the  argument  made  that  the 
certainty,  not  the  sefverity  of  punishment,  deterred  from  the 
commission  of  crimes.  This  speech  was  printed  and  ex- 
tensively circulated,  the  leading  ideas  receiving  the  gen- 
eral approval  of  the  press  and  bar. 


282  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Judge  Tilford  often  recalls  with  pride  his  advocacy  of 
a  bill  which  became  a  law,  to  enable  aliens  to  inherit  real 
and  personal  estate  as  fully  as  native  born  citizens — a 
measure  which,  just  in  itself,  has  exercised  a  beneficial 
influence  on  the  prosperity  of  the  State.  He  also  advo- 
cated, with  zeal  and  deep  interest,  a  confirmation  of 
the  celebrated  Yan  N^ess  Ordinance  by  the  legislature. 
The  measure  then  failed,  but  in  1858  was  adopted,  and  is 
now  universally  admitted  to  have  been  one  of  the  most 
salutary  measures  ever  passed  by  a  California  legislature. 

To  Horace  Hawes,  then  a  member  of  the  assembly, 
is  undoubtedly  due  the  credit  of  the  Consolidation  Bill. 
It  originated  with  him.  Yet,  when  it  came  to  the  senate, 
it  met  with  a  violent  opposition,  and  but  for  the  cordial 
and  active  support  which  it  received  from  Senators  Til- 
ford  and  Shaw,  must  have  miscarried. 

The  property  owners  of  San  Francisco  at  that  time 
will  always  gratefully  remember  the  constant,  persistent 
opposition  which  Mr.  Tilford  made  to  any  and  all  schemes 
for  the  control  by  individuals  or  corporations  of  the  har- 
bor and  water  front  of  the  city. 

In  1856,  Judge  Tilford  was  a  candidate  before  the 
Democratic  State  Convention  for  Congress.  His  oppo- 
nent was  the  Hon.  Charles  L.  Scott,  who  received  the 
nomination  by  a  small  majority.  The  party  in  California 
was  then  divided  into  two  very  distinct  elements — the 
chivalry,  or  Southern  wing,  and  the  more  conservative 
portion,  composed  of  men  from  all  sections  of  the  coun- 
try and  opposed  to  radicalism  in  any  shape.  Judge  Til- 
ford belonged  to  the  latter  division.  The  Federal  office- 
holders acted  generally  with  the  chivalry  wing;  and  gave 
an  almost  unanimous  support  to  the  successful  candidate. 

The  Legislature  which  convened  on  the  first  Monday 
in  January,  1857,  was  charged  with  the  duty  of  electing 
two  United  States  Senators,  in  place  of  Willliam  M.  Gwin 
and  John  B.  Weller.  The  Hon.  David  C.  Broderick  was 
nominated  by  the  Democratic  caucus,  and  elected  in  joint 
convention,  on  the  first  ballot,  to  succeed  John  B.  Weller. 
Judge  Tilford  was  an  active,  zealous,  untiring  supporter 
of  Mr.  Broderick.     He  was  selected  to  make  the  nomina- 


FRANK   TILFORD.  283 

tion,  which  he  did,  accompanying  it  with  a  speech  which 
was  published  and  warmly  aj)plauded  by  the  friends  of 
the  new  Senator. 

In  1857,  Judge  Tilford  received  from  the  President 
the  appointment  of  Naval  Officer  of  the  Port  of  San 
Francisco,  which  position  he  held  for  the  full  term  of 
four  years.  This  appointment  was  made  in  acknowledg- 
ment of  the  many  and  faithful  services  rendered  by  the 
appointee  in  behalf  of  his  party. 

Upon  retiring  from  office,  and  on  a  final  accounting 
with  the  Treasury  Department,  he  received  not  only  an 
acquittance,  but  an  order  for  money  found  to  be  due  him 
— a  practical  endorsement  of  double  value. 

During  his  stay  in  the  Naval  Office,  he  participated 
in  every  political  canvass  which  occurred  in  the  State. 

When,  in  1860,  the  memorable  division  took  place  in 
the  ranks  of  the  Democratic  party  resulting  in  the  nomi- 
nation of  Stephen  A.  Douglas  and  John  C.  Breckenridge, 
Judge  Tilford' s  earnest  wish  and  efforts  were  for  a  reiin- 
ion  of  the  party  in  California.  He  endeavored  to  pre- 
vail upon  the  party  leaders  to  j^resent  but  one  electoral 
ticket  to  the  people.  The  candidates  for  presidential 
electors  were  to  cast  the  vote  of  the  State  as  a  majority 
of  the  ballots  they  received  might  indicate  the  preference 
of  the  masses  of  the  party.  This  plan  failing.  Judge 
Tilford  then  gave  his  support  to  Breckenridge.  He  can- 
vassed the  State  with  unflagging  spirit,  although  his  views 
did  not  entirely  coincide  with  those  of  either  wing  of  the 
party.  He  had  always  opposed  secession  as  unconstitu- 
tional, wrong  in  theory  and  pernicious  in  practice.  On 
the  other  hand,  in  common  with  a  large  number  of  the 
leading  statesmen  and  journals  of  the  North,  he  believed 
coercion  a  dangerous  remedy,  liable  to  terminate  in  the 
subversion  of  States'  rights  and  the  centralization  of 
power — that,  while  the  Federal  government  had  the  un- 
doubted right  to  maintain  and  defend  its  own  existence, 
imminent  danger  to  popular  liberty  was  to  be  appre- 
hended from  standing  armies  and  military  dictatorship. 
When  it  became  apparent  that  an  amicable  adjustment  of 
our  national  difficulties  was  impossible,  that  the- issue  was 


284  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF  THE   PACIFIC. 

to  be  presented  to  the  arbitrament  of  the  sword — he  felt 
it  his  duty  to  sustain  the  government  under  which  he 
lived  and  to  which  he  owed  allegiance. 

In  the  same  year,  a  committee  was  appointed  by  the 
San  Francisco  leaders  of  the  Breckenridge  branch  of  the 
Democracy,  to  prepare  an  Address  to  the  people  of  the 
State,  vindicating  the  course  of  the  Baltimore  Convention 
in  nominating  Breckenridge,  and  the  claims  of  their  can- 
didate to  popular  support.  This  committee  consisted  of 
Hon.  0.  C.  Pratt,  since  Judge  of  the  12th  Judicial  Dis- 
trict, Hon.  R,.  Augustus  Thompson,  formerly  a  member 
of  Congress  from  Virginia,  and  Mr.  Tilford.  The  address 
prepared  and  published  by  these  gentlemen,  set  forth  very 
ably  and  eloquently  all  the  positions  which  the  press  and 
speakers  of  the  Breckenridge  wing  afterwards  sustained. 

From  1861  to  1863,  Judge  Tilford  was  not  engaged  in 
the  practice  of  his  profession;  and,  although  feeling  a 
profound  interest  iu  the  events  progressing  in  the  Atlan- 
tic States,  abstained  from  any  active  participation  in 
politics. 

In  the  fall  of  the  latter  year  he  removed  to  the  then 
Territory  of  I^evada,  and  entered  again  on  his  professional 
labors. 

In  1864,  he  was  elected  Superintendent  of  Public  In- 
struction in  Storey  County,  and  acted  in  that  capacity 
until  the  adoption  of  the  State  Constitution  placed  the 
control  of  the  public  schools  in  other  hands.  Shortly 
afterwards  he  was  appointed  City  Attorney  of  Virginia 
City,  and  retained  by  a  Board  of  Aldermen  politically 
opposed  to  him.  One  incident  in  his  career  in  Nevada  is 
particularly  worthy  of  mention.  It  occurred  in  the  sum- 
mer of  1864.  In  August  of  that  year,  a  concerted  and 
general  uprising  of  the  miners  of  the  Virginia  District 
took  place,  caused  by  an  attempt  to  reduce  their  wages. 
Labor  was  suspended.  Threats  of  violence  were  freely 
made  against  the  Superintendent  of  the  Gould  &  Curry 
mine.  At  one  time  there  appeared  serious  danger  of  a 
wide  destruction  of  property  by  the  multitude.  The 
procession,  numbering  three  to  four  thousand  strong, 
marched  through  the  streets  of  Virginia,  and  finally  as- 


FRANK   TILFORD.  285 

sembled  in  front  of  the  International  Hotel.  At  the  earn- 
est request  of  Mr.  Stewart;  now  United  States  Senator, 
and  other  prominent  citizens,  Judge  Tilford  consented 
to  address  the  exasperated  crowd.  His  remarks  were 
well-timed,  well-received,  and  had  a  very  happy  effect. 
The  people  gradually  dispersed,  and  the  whole  proceed- 
ing ended  harmlessly. 

In  the  spring  of  1866,  Mr.  Tilford,  feeling  satisfied 
that  there  was  no  prospect  of  a  revival  of  prosperity  in 
Virginia  City,  sought  a  new  and  more  promising  locality. 

At  that  time,  the  Excelsior  Mining  District,  in  Ne- 
vada county,  California,  engrossed  a  considerable  share 
of  public  attention,  and  was  believed  to  be  one  of  the 
richest  mineral  regions  on  the  Pacific  Coast.  He  was 
then,  and  for  some  time  past  had  been,  largely  interested 
in  the  mines  of  that  section.  Thither  he  removed  in 
May,  and  opened  a  law  office  in  the  town  of  Meadow 
Lake,  in  connection  with  J.  C.  Foster,  Esq.  The  district 
proved  a  runious  failure.  The  character  and  peculiar 
formation  of  the  ledges,  the  vast  amount  of  rebellious 
sulphurets  in  the  metalliferous  lodes,  and  more  than  all, 
the  length  of  the  winter,  which,  in  this  mountainous  re- 
gion, extends  over  eight  months,  united  to  disappoint  the 
expectations  of  thousands,  who  had  invested  their  means 
in  the  mines  of  the  locality.  While  residing  at  '^  Meadow 
Lake,"  Mr.  Tilford  edited  the  ^'/Swri,"  an  independent 
newspaper.  He  also  prepared  an  elaborate  description  of 
the  mines,  and  history  of  mining  operations,  in  Excelsior ; 
giving  an  account  of  the  discovery,  settlement,  resources, 
scenery  and  prospects  of  this  romantic  section  of  country. 
This  interesting  narrative  first  appeared  in  Bean's  Direc- 
tory of  Nevada  county,  (1866)  and  also,  in  a  condensed 
form,  in  the  California  Scrap  Book  (1869).  It  is  replete 
with  valuable  knowledge  concerning  an  extensive  and  al- 
most unknown  region,  (remarkable  for  its  mineral  rich- 
ness as  well  as  the  beauty  and  grandeur  of  its  scenery) 
and  being  written  in  very  attractive  style,  will  repay 
attentive  perusal. 

In  the  summer  of  1866,  the  Democratic  convention 
of  Nevada  county  met  at  Grass  Valley.     Hearing  that  an 


286  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

effort  would  be  made  to  give  him  some  place  on  the  ticket, 
and  having  abandoned  the  field  of  politics,  Judge  Tilford 
addressed  a  letter  to  the  convention,  declining  any  nomi- 
nation. The  convention,  however,  aware  of  his  popu- 
larity and  abilities  as  a  public  speaker,  unanimously  nomi- 
nated him  for  State  Senator.  At  the  urgent  request  of 
some  of  the  most  prominent  Democrats  of  the  county,  he 
accepted  the  nomination.  No  one  supposed  his  election 
was  possible.  Nevada  county  had  been,  and  was  stil] 
claimed  as,  the  banner  county  of  the  Republican  party. 
Mr.  Lincoln's  majority  in  1864,  was  over  twelve  hundred. 
At  the  judicial  election  in  1865,  the  Republican  nominee 
for  Supreme  Judge  received  one  thousand  majority. 
Judge  Tilford  entered  the  canvass,  and  addressed  the 
people  almost  every  night  in  the  months  of  July  and  Au- 
gust, visiting  nearly  every  town,  village  and  mining  camp 
in  that  populous  county — from  the  summit  of  the  Sierras 
where  the  reign  of  winter  is  unbroken,  to  the  valleys 
where  flowers  are  in  continual  bloom.  His  meetings  were 
large — the  people  never  stayed  at  home  when  Tilford  was 
announced  to  speak.  His  political  enemies  confess,  that, 
in  the  conduct  of  this  campaign,  he  made  the  most  gal- 
lant fight  ever  witnessed  in  Nevada  county,  while  his 
friends  were  enthusiastic  in  their  expressions  of  admira- 
tion. His  opponent  was  Hon.  E.  W.  Roberts,  who,  on 
the  official  count,  was  shown  to  be  elected  by  a  majority 
of  ninety-one  out  of  a  total  vote  exceeding ^V6  thousand. 

When  the  legislature  met  at  Sacramento  in  Decem- 
ber, 1867,  Judge  Tilford' s  name  was  brought  forward  by 
many  of  his  friends  as  a  candidate  for  United  States  Sena- 
tor, and  submitted  to  the  Democratic  legislative  caucus. 
The  universal  esteem  in  which  he  was  held  by  the  people 
of  his  county  was  shown  in  the  fact  that,  before  the  Dem- 
ocratic caucus  had  agreed  upon  a  candidate  for  Senator, 
all  the  Democratic  and  Republican  papers  of  Nevada 
county  advocated  his  nomination  and  election. 

In  November,  1867,  he  returned  to  his  first  home 
on  the  Pacific  Coast,  San  Francisco,  where  he  formed  a 
partnership  with  Tully  R.  Wise,  formerly  United  States 
District  Attorney,  and  applied  himself  diligently  to  his 


FRANK   TILFORD-  287 

profession.  In  the  Presidential  election  of  1868,  he 
supported  Seymour  and  Blair.  He  retains  firmly  the 
principles  cherished  through  his  entire  political  career. 

Judge  Tilford  occupied  a  prominent  place  in  the 
gifted  band  of  orators  whose  appeals  were  wont,  in  the 
olden  times,  to  thrill  and  electrify  the  hearts  of  the  multi- 
tude; whose  contests  have  become  famous  and  whose 
achievements  have  passed  into  the  history  of  the  State. 
The  voices  of  Baker,  Ferguson,  Hawks  and  Griffith,  in 
life  so  eloquent,  have  long  been  hushed.  Tilford  remains 
among  the  few  who  not  only  w^itnessed  their  triumphs, 
but  gathered  laurels  with  them  on  the  field  of  debate. 
He  often  recurs,  with  proud  emotion,  to  his  old  compan- 
ionship with  those  gallant  spirits.  As  a  political  debater 
and  popular  speaker  he  has  few  equals  in  California.  His 
prepared  addresses  to  literary  and  benevolent^  associa- 
tions, of  which  he  has  delivered  many,  are  ripe  and  artis- 
tic productions.  His  command  of  language  is  remarka- 
ble and  he  is  always  effective  in  addressing  a  jury. 

At  this  time  Mr.  Tilford  is  in  the  White  Pine  district, 
actively,  and  we  trust,  profitably,  engaged  in  conducting 
litigation.  His  home  is,  however,  still  in  San  Francisco, 
and  thither  he  expects,  at  no  distant  day,  to  return  and 
spend  the  remainder  of  his  life. 

Frank  Tilford  has  retired  from  the  political  arena. 
The  conflicts  of  party  and  the  contests  of  politicians  pos- 
sess no  attractions  for  him.  Hereafter,  he  will  devote 
his  talents  and  energies  to  professional  pursuits,  which, 
if  less  exciting,  are  in  their  results  more  satisfactory  than 
the  toils  or  triumphs  of  a  partisan.  In  one  respect  he 
has  been  ever  consistent,  and  to  one  aspiration  always 
true — his  devotion  to  the  advancement,  and  confidence 
in  the  grand  destinies,  of  the  Pacific  Coast. 

A  glorious  commonwealth  of  States,  extending  along 
the  shores  of  the  Pacific,  from  the  Arctic  circle  to  Pana- 
ma, united  by  a  common  interest,  with  free  institutions, 
a  homogeneous  population,  and  in  the  enjoyment  of  a 
degree  of  prosperity  unparalleled  in  history,  is  now,  and 
has  been  for  the  last  twenty  years,  the  cherished  hope 
and  day-dream  of  his  existence. 


288  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 


#«ati0tt  %  |.  MiUmA, 


At  the  Metropolitan  Theatre,  San  Francisco,  March 
17th,  1863,  ON  the  History,  Resources  and  Genius 
of  Ireland. 

More  than  fourteen  centuries  have  passed  since  the  Saint  whose 
venerated  memory  endears  to  our  hearts  the  day  we  celebrate,  car- 
ried the  Cross  of  our  Redeemer  to  the  shores  of  Ireland.  Never 
had  heaven  ordained  a  nobler  Apostle,  or  sublimer  mission.  Thirty 
years  before,  the  Saint  had  escaped  by  flight  from  servitude  in  the 
Island  he  was  now  revisiting.  He  returns  to  the  scene  of  his  youth- 
ful captivity,  with  no  recollection  of  wrongs  unavenged — ^with  no 
purpose  of  signalizing  by  fire  and  sword  the  triumphs  of  a  Con- 
queror. No  martial  music  awakens  the  echoes  of  the  lonely  coast — 
no  army  with  banners  salute  him  as  their  Chieftain — no  retinue  of 
steel-clad  warriors  draw  their  glittering  blades  at  his  command. 
Twenty  men,  eminent  for  their  wisdom  and  sanctity,  and  armed 
only  with  the  insignia  of  their  priestly  office,  accompanied  the  holy 
man.  Attended  by  these  faithful  disciples,  and  inspired  by  the 
power  which  had  so  often  illumined  his  spirit  in  the  sleepless  vigils 
of  the  night,  the  Apostle  of  God  went  forth  with  unfaltering  step, 
to  encounter  the  Pagan  host.  The  contest  was  soon  decided ;  nor 
was  the  result  doubtful.  Wherever  the  voice  of  the  Sainted  Sage 
was  heard,  the  temples  of  Idolatry  were  deserted,  and  their  priests 
fled  in  dismay  from  the  ensanguined  altars.  It  is  not  my  purpose 
to  comment  on  the  life  of  the  Apostle;  learned  divines  have  alrea- 
dy on  this  day,  and  on  other  occasions,  eloquently  performed  that 
duty.  Permit  me,  however,  to  dwell  for  a  moment  on  one  trait  in 
the  character  of  the  revolution  that  St.  Patrick  inaugurated,  which 
excites  our  special  wonder,  and  deserves  to  be  inscribed  in  golden 
letters  on  the  pages  of  the  world's  history.  It  is  the  truth  that  dur- 
ing his  entire  mission,  from  the  day  he  arrived  in  Leinster  until 
the  hour  of  his  death,  more  than  sixty  years  afterwards,  not  a  life 
was  sacrificed,  nor  a  pang  inflicted,  to  secure  the  imperishable,  yet 
peaceful  victories  of  the  Cross.  For  thirteen  centuries  the  Irish 
people  have  observed  this  day  as  a  national  anniversary.  At  the 
present  hour  the  representatives  of  that  race,  in  almost  every  coun- 
try on  the  inhabitable  globe,  are  celebrating  the  occasion  with  sol- 
emn rites  or  joyous  festivities. 

On  the  banks  of  the  Shannon,  in  the  mines  of  Australia,  amid 
the  orange  groves  of  the  Tropics,  in  the  ruined  cities  of  the  Orient, 
and  under  the  shade  of  the  primeval  forests  which  fringe  the  waters 
of  the  Mississippi,  thousands  of  eyes  will  beam  with  rapture  as  they 
behold  unfurled  to  the  breeze,  and  radiant  in  the  bright  light  of 
heaven,  that  symbol  of  nationality  and  emblem  of  freedom,  the 
ancient  banner  of  the  "Harp  and  Sunburst."    Thousands  of  gen- 


FRANK    TILFORD.  289 

erous  hearts  will  throb  with  exultation,  as  thej  recall  the  glorious 
memories  of  the  Emerald  Isle;  memories,  musical  and  immortal  as 
the  leaves  of  the  Tooba  tree  which  blooms  only  in  the  garden  of 
Paradise,  and  "whose  scent  is  the  breath  of  eternity."  The  his- 
tory of  Ireland ! — the  very  words  awaken  feelings  unutterable  in 
the  heart  of  the  exile.  What  intellect  can  do  justice  to  the  theme? 
As  the  rainbow  is  formed  by  the  tears  of  the  clouds  and  the  rays  of 
the  sun,  so  are  the  annals  of  Erin  colored  and  varied;  now  by  the 
tears  of  sorrow,  now  by  the  flashes  of  wit  and  sunshine  of  joy. 

But  we  have  assembled  not  merely  to  jDlease  the  imagination 
with  visions  of  national  renown,  or  glowing  images  of  a  cloudless 
future.  Eeality  and  truth  exact  other  duties.  The  occasion  irre- 
sistibly suggests  to  the  reflective  mind,  thoughts  and  inquiries  of  a 
more  serious  character.  Ireland  was  once  not  only  independent, 
but  one  of  the  most  powerful  governments  of  Europe.  Will  she 
regain  her  ancient  position  ?  History  teaches  the  melancholy  truth 
that  nations  often  rise  like  stars  on  the  horizon  of  time,  glitter 
awhile  in  the  zenith  of  their  glory,  pass  away  and  disappear  in  the 
gloom  of  darkling  centuries.  On  the  shores  and  in  the  deserts  of 
Asia,  and  amid  the  forests  of  America,  empires  have  flourished 
whose  names  have  perished  from  the  earth,  and  whose  tombs  are 
the  only  monuments  which  the  hand  of  remorseless  time  has  spared. 
The  renown  of  Greece  and  Rome  suiwives  only  in  the  pages  of 
the  historian.  Florence,  Venice  and  Genoa,  were  once  gems  in  the 
diadem  of  modern  Europe;  they  are  now  subjugated  dependencies 
of  Austria.  Is  Ireland  doomed  to  be  the  Pleiad  lost  among  the 
nations  of  our  era?  Canada,  Australia,  and  the  West  Indies  have 
their  colonial  parliaments,  are  exempt  from  Imperial  taxes,  and  in- 
dependent in  all  but  the  name;  while  Ireland  is  a  province  of  Eng- 
land:— a  mere  appendage  of  the  British  crown.  Regarding  alone 
her  present  situation,  it  is  difficult  to  realize  that  she  has  been  a 
Kingdom,  potent  in  arms  and  munificently  endowed  with  all  the 
elements  of  national  prosperity.  Yet  it  is  true,  that  during  the 
first  twelve  centuries  of  the  Christian  era,  the  Island  was  famous 
throughout  the  civilized  world,  for  its  treasures  of  gold  and  silver, 
its  manufactures,  institutions  of  learning,  and  advancements  in  the 
arts  and  sciences.  In  the  sixth  century,  missionaries  from  Ireland 
traversed  France,  Switzerland  and  Germany,  establishing  churches 
and  monasteries  in  every  country  they  visited.  When  the  legions 
of  Rome  carried  the  standard  of  the  empire  in  triumph  from  the 
Euphrates  to  the  Atlantic,  and  from  the  Mediterranean  to  the  North 
Sea,  the  land  of  Erin  maintained  its  liberties,  and  alone  defied  the 
armies  of  Caesar  and  his  successors.  In  the  tenth  century,  while 
the  remainder  of  Europe  was  enveloped  in  a  night  of  profound  ig- 
norance, the  Island  was  regarded  and  has  been  happily  styled,  "A 
beacon  of  learning  in  the  West. "  Without  pausing  at  present  to 
investigate  the  causes  which  have  reduced  a  brave  and  chivalrous 
peoj^le  to  a  condition  of  vassalage,  let  us  inquire:  Has  Ireland  the 
resources,  physical,  moral  and  intellectual,  to  support  in  this  age 
the  rank  of  an  independent  nation?    In  the  first  place,  her  insular 

19 


290  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC . 

position  is  no  ordinary  advantage  for  defensive  purposes.  England 
in  her  wars  witli  various  Continental  Powers,  for  the  last  four  hun- 
dred years,  has  experienced  the  benefit  of  this  isolation.  The  At- 
lantic, as  a  barrier  of  defense  between  the  States  of  America  and 
the  sovereignties  of  Euro23e,  is  worth  to  the  former,  millions  of 
bayonets.  The  population  of  Ireland,  twenty  years  ago,  was  some 
eight  millions,  two  hundred  thousand  souls;  and  this  number,  (since 
reduced  by  emigration  and  other  causes)  we  may  reasonably  as- 
sume she  can  always  maintain.  The  Island  contains  an  area  of 
thirty -five  thousand,  five  hundred  and  twelve  square  miles;  of  which 
there  are  fourteen  millions,  five  hundred  thousand  acres  of  excellent 
arable  land.  The  fruits  and  cereals  of  the  temperate  zone  reward 
the  labors  of  the  husbandman  more  certainly  and  plenteously  than 
in  any  other  country  on  the  Eastern  Hemisphere.  The  fertility  of 
the  soil,  like  the  beauty  of  the  scenery,  is  proverbial,  and  has  won 
for  the  Emerald  Isle  the  proud  appellation  of  the  Eden  of  the  west 
of  Europe.  Extensive  coal  formations  abound  in  each  of  the  four 
provinces.  Mines  of  lead,  copper,  and  iron — indeed,  of  all  the  met- 
als required  in  manufactures  and  the  useful  arts — are  found  in 
almost  every  part  of  the  Island.  More  than  a  hundred  streams,  ris- 
ing in  the  mountains  of  the  interior,  intersect  the  land,  expanding 
at  places  into  magnificent  lakes,  enriching  the  soil  by  annual  over- 
flows, and  affording  an  amount  of  power  for  manufacturing  purposes 
greater  than  that  of  England  and  Scotland  combined.  Beneficent 
nature  has  completed  her  favors  to  Ireland,  by  bestowing  on  it  a 
mild  and  salubrious  climate;  the  vapory  winds  from  the  Atlantic, 
the  music  of  whose  surging  billows  forever  resounds  from  its 
shores,  temper  equally  the  vigor  of  winter,  and  the  fervor  of  the 
summer  solstice :  so  many  and  varied  are  the  resources  of  this  fa- 
vored land,  that  it  would  require  hours  to  recite  them.  The  view 
suggested  is  all  that  the  occasion  j^ermits.  Other  nations,  vvith 
material  advantages  incomparably  less,  have  achieved  independ- 
ence, and  an  honorable  name  among  the  powers  of  the  earth.  In 
our  own  age  Belgium  has  separated  from  Holland;  Greece  has  been 
rescued  from  the  Ottoman  Empire ;  Mexico  and  the  States  of  South 
America  have  carved  with  their  swords  the  way  to  freedom.  Por- 
tugal, in  the  sixteenth  century,  was  for  a  time  subjugated  by 
Spain :  a  few  determined  sj)irits  at  Lisbon  initiated  a  revolt  which 
overthrew  the  Spanish  domination,  and  secured  the  liberties  of 
their  country.  Switzerland,  with  less  than  half  the  territory  of 
Ireland,  with  no  treasures  and  without  an  army,  valiantly  and  suc- 
cessfuly  warred  with  Austria  for  her  independence.  In  vain  the 
Imperial  hordes  invaded  the  indomitable  Cantons:  swifter  than  the 
mountain  torrent  leaps  to  the  plains;  more  terrible  than  the  Alpine 
avalanche;  the  brave  Swiss  dashed  upon  the  legions  of  tyranny  and 
drove  them,  reeling  and  shattered,  from  the  sacred  soil  of  Switzer- 
land. Noble  Switzerland !  home  of  Tell :  land  of  song,  of  art,  and 
literature :  the  spirit  of  liberty  reigns  amid  the  snows  of  thy  eter- 
nal glaciers,  and  looks  down  with  brow  serene,  and  undaunted 
eye,  on  the  frowning  despotisms  which  surround  her.     With  ex- 


FRANK    TILFORD.  291 

amples  so  encouraging,  why  need  we  despair  of  the  ultimate  destiny 
of  Ireland?  With  means  so  ample  at  her  command,  what  shall 
prevent  her  from  assuming  that  proud  station  among  the  powers  of 
the  world,  which  she  held  for  more  than  a  thousand  years,  under 
heV  ancient  monarchs?  It  may  be  asked,  has  the  spirit  of  her  peo- 
ple declined?  have  ages  of  oppression  withered  the  energy,  tal- 
ent, and  indomitable  valor  of  former  days?  Lord  Bacon  wisely 
observes:  "Walled  towns,  stored  arsenals  and  armories,  goodly 
races  of  horses,  chariots  of  war,  elephants,  ordnance,  artillery, 
and  the  like;  all  this  is  but  a  sheep  in  the  lion's  skin,  except  the 
breed  and  disposition  of  the  people  be  stout  and  warlike."  No 
one  familiar  with  the  annals  and  literature  of  Ireland  for  the  last 
two  centuries;  no  one  who  has  followed,  by  the  light  of  impartial 
history,  the  course  of  her  people  since  their  dispersion  over  the 
earth,  can  doubt  the  moral  worth  or  intellectual  vigor  of  her  sons 
and  daughters,  their  love  of  country,  and  devotion  to  freedom. 
No  one  can  doubt  that,  animated  by  such  principles,  they  are  capa- 
ble of  performing  deeds  of  heroic  daring,  and  of  suffering  with 
uncomplaining  fortitude  all  the  ills  of  life,  or  terrors  of  death. 
There  are  many  who  affect  to  believe  the  heartless  sentiment  of  a 
celebrated  writer,  that  "Nations  deserve  their  fate  whatever  it  may 
be";  who  regard  all  errors  as  crimes,  and  any  misfortune  as  the 
just  sequence  of  our  actions.  Arguments  are  of  no  avail  with  such 
casuists. 

Let  all  who  delight  to  trace  the  character  of  a  nation  in  the 
qualities  of  its  popular  leaders — -and  human  wisdom  has  devised  no 
safer  rule  of  judgment — dwell  for  a  moment  on  the  lives  of  some 
of  the  illustrious  men,  who  by  their  actions  or  writings  have  reflect- 
ed an  ineffaceable  lustre  on  the  Irish  name.  Summoned  by  memo- 
ry's magical  wand,  they  appear  in  procession  before  us,  not  as  the 
shadowy  pageant  of  a  dream,  but  like  unto  men  with  earnest,  liv- 
ing souls.  They  speak,  they  move  again  upon  the  stage  of  their 
glory.  Their  words  of  matchless  eloquence  ring  in  the  deep  cham- 
bers of  our  hearts,  and  their  immortal  deeds  thrill  with  ecstacy  the 
life-currents  as  they  course  through  our  veins.  First  i^  Dean 
Swift — 

"Swift,  the  wonder  of  tis  age — : 
Statesman,  yet  patriot;  priest,  yet  sage." 

The  eccentric  satirist,  the  dreaded  wit,  of  Queen  Anne's  reign,  al- 
though false  to  his  "Stella,"  is  always  true  to  his  native  land. 
There,  too,  is  Steene,  one  of  the  most  sublime  and  pathetic  of 
writers;  and  here  Steele,  the  friend  of  Addison,  and  famous  as  an 
essayist  in  a  period  justly  denominated  the  Augustan  era  of  Eng- 
lish literature.  Near  them  is  Goldsmith,  the  sweetest  poet  of  his 
or  any  age — in  whose  Deserted  Village  Ibreathes  the  very  soul  of 
poetry,  and  whose  inimitable  Vicar  of  Wakefield  has  been  translat- 
ed into  all  the  languages  of  modern  Europe.  Burke,  with  his 
thoughtful  eye,  and  majestic  person,  approaches.  He  discourses 
on  the   "Sublime  and  Beautiful,"  or  peradventure,  lifting  the  veil 


292  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

which  conceals  the  future  from  our  vision,  points  to  the  Colonies 
on  the  distant  shores  of  America,  and  predicts  that  ere  another 
century  has  elapsed,  they  will  rise  into  mighty  Republics.  Sib 
Philip  Francis  draws  nigh;  he  holds  in  his  hand  a  pen  bright  as 
the  spear  of  Ithuriel,  and  although  his  face  is  masked  and  averted, 
we  hail  him  as  the  scourge  of  tyrants — the  undoubted  author  of 
the  * 'Letters  of  Junius."  Here,  too,  is  Moore,  over  whose  natal 
hour  the  Genii  of  Erin  presided.  His  immortal  harp  is  bedecked 
with  roses,  and  at  his  touch,  pours  on  the  enchanted  air  all  the 
melodies  of  his  native  Isle.  The  poet,  through  every  vicissitude  of 
life,  was  devoted  to  the  liberty  and  glory  of  Ireland.  He  never 
forgot  or  deserted  her.  His  own  beautiful  lines  will  apply  to 
himself — 

"Xand  of  song!  said  the  warrior  bard, 

Though  all  the  world  betrays  her; 

One  sword  at  least  thy  rights  shall  guard, 

One  faithful  harp  shall  praise  thee." 

And  now  Sheridan  is  before  us — ill  fated  son  of  genius;  the  com- 
panion of  nobles  yet  the  friend  of  the  people.  Ages  may  expu-e 
before  the  world  shall  feel  again  the  ardent  glow  of  an  intellect  as 
brilliant  and  versatile  as  that  of  Richard  Brinsley  Sheridan. 

We  stand  at  last  in  the  august  presence  of  Henry  Grattan,  the 
peerless  orator  and  inflexible  patriot.  "While  in  the  prime  of  life, 
he  aided,  by  his  commanding  intellect  and  overpowering  eloquence, 
to  achieve  the  independence  of  his  native  land;  but  alas,  the  days 
of  her  freedom  were  evanescent,  and  his  eyes,  dimmed  with  age 
and  sorrow,  were  doomed  to  witness  the  passage  of  the  misnamed 
*'Act  of  Union,"  a  measure  which  sullied  the  honor  of  England, 
and  wrested  from  Ireland  her  natural  and  inherent  rights.  Even 
in  that  hour  of  a  nation's  anguish,  when  gloom  shrouded  all  hearts, 
his  words  were  redolent  of  hope  and  encouragement.  In  his  last 
and  noblest  speech  in  the  Irish  House  of  Commons,  we  read  these 
memorable  words:  "Liberty  may  repair  her  golden  beams,  and 
with  redoubled  heart,  animate  the  country.  *  *  *  I  do  not  give  up 
the  country;  I  see  her  in  a  swoon,  but  she  is  not  dead.  Though  in 
her  tomb  she  lies,  helpless  and  motionless,  still,  there  is  on  her 
lips  a  spirit  of  life,  and  on  her  cheek  a  glow  of  beautv. 

"Thou  art  not  conquered;  beauty's  ensign  yet, 
Is  crimson  on  thy  lips  and  in  thy  cheek, 
And  death's  pale  flag  is  not  advanced  there. " 

'  *  While  a  plank  of  the  vessel  sticks  together  I  will  not  leave  her.  Let 
the  courtier  present  his  flimsy  sail,  and  carry  the  light  barque  of  his 
faith  with  every  new  breath  of  wind;  I  will  remain  anchored  here, 
with  fidelity  to  the  fortunes  of  my  country,  faithful  to  her  freedom, 
faithful  to  her  fall."  After  Grattan,  appear  Flood,  Curran,  Phil- 
lips, Shell,  amidst  a  host  of  illustrious  intellects  celebrated  as  ora- 
tors, statesmen,  or  jurists,  distinguished  in  the  various  arts  and 
sciences.  But  happier,  if  not  greater  than  these — than  all  who  pre- 
ceded him — arises  before  us  the  world-renowned  Liberator,  Daniel 


PRANK    TILFORD.  293 

O'CoNNELL.  Viewed  after  this  interval  of  time,  and  at  a  place  so  re- 
mote from  the  scene  where  they  occurred,  the  incidents  of  his  life 
bear  the  semblance  of  romance,  rather  than  realities  of  historical 
truth.  He  was  descended  from  a  Sept  which,  for  six  centuries,  had 
opposed  on  the  field,  and  in  the  council,  the  oppression  of  Eng- 
land. His  name  and  lineage  consecrated  him  to  his  country's  ser- 
vice. From  the  year  seventeen  hundred  and  ninety-nine,  until 
death  terminated  his  labors  and  canonized  his  memory,  O'Connell 
led  the  vanguard  of  patriots  who  had  dedicated  their  lives  and  for- 
tunes to  the  accomplishment  of  Irish  independence  and  Catholic 
emancipation.  It  would  require  hours  to  unfold  the  record  of  his 
speeches  and  triumphs.  His  heart  knew  not  what  it  was  to  fear  or 
to  despond,  and  his  career  was  fortunate,  as  his  disposition  was 
happy.  He  enjoyed  the  felicity,  rarely  allotted  to  the  Reformers  of 
any  age,  of  living  to  see  the  fruition  of  many  of  his  labors,  and 
hearing,  in  the  approving  voice  of  his  contemporaries,  the  *'A11 
Hail"  of  generations  yet  unborn.  His  highest  eulogium  is  express- 
ed in  the  truthful  words,  that  for  whatever  measure  of  liberty  or 
prosperity  Ireland  this  day  enjoys,  she  is  more  indebted  to  Daniel 
O'CoNNELL  than  to  any  other  man,  living  or  dead.  But,  alas  !  in  this 
procession  of  orators,  poets,  heroes,  and  sages,  we  behold  one  whose 
tragic  fate  has  been  the  theme  of  song  and  eloquence  in  every  clime. 
Beneath  an  uninscribed  tomb,  in  the  lonely  and  deserted  church  of 
St.  Michael,  reposes  the  noblest  martyr  that  ever  perished  in  Free- 
dom's cause — Robert  Emmet.  "We  review  the  story  of  his  life  with 
melancholy  pleasure.  Em;met,  when  only  twenty-four  years  of  age, 
visited  France  as  the  agent  of  the  Society  of  United  Irishmen.  Na- 
poleon, then  first  Consul  of  the  Republic,  was  in  the  meridian  of 
his  fame.  No  reverses  had  obscured  the  glory  of  Areola  and  Mar- 
engo, and  fate  had  cast  no  ominous  shadow  on  the  pathway  of  the 
"Liberator  of  Italy."  The  advocates  of  liberty  naturally  regarded 
him  as  their  friend  and  the  protector  of  their  cause.  Emmet  had 
an  interview  with  the  first  Consul.  What  was  the  purport  of 
the  conference  has  never  been  known,  but  we  may  imagine  the 
scene.  "We  see  Napoleon,  as  he  turns  to  the  young  enthusiast  his 
marble  brow,  and  bends  on  him  his  deep  and  unfathomable  eyes. 
"We  see  Emmet  as  he  unrolls  the  map  of  Ireland,  and  indicates  the 
points  of  attack  or  defence.  We  hear  the  low,  earnest  tones  of  his 
musical  voice,  when  he  assures  the  ruler  of  France  that  a  million 
of  enslaved  men  in  Ireland  await  with  fiery  impatience  the  signal 
of  revolt;  they  want  from  France  arms — only  arms — give  them  wea- 
pons, and  they  will  trust  to  God  and  their  own  good  swords  for  de- 
liverance. His  face  is  resplendent  with  enthusiasm,  as  he  foretells 
the  future  of  his  beloved  country;  her  ancient  liberties  regained; 
her  arts  and  commerce  revived;  the  grateful  ally  of  France;  the 
unrelenting  foe  to  England's  aggressions. 

A  year  has  rolled  away,  and  the  scene  changes  from  a  palace  to  a 
prison.  The  insurrection  of  the  fatal  and  ever-memorable  night  of 
the  twenty-third  of  July  had  failed,  and  no  ray  of  hope  illumined  the 
darkness  of  despotism.     He,  who  only  a  few  months  ago  was  the 


294  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF  THE    PACIFIC.    . 

honored  visitor  of  the  Republican  Court  of  France^  is  now  the  in- 
mate of  a  narrow  cell,  by  the  world  forsaken,  and  with  no  other 
companion  than  his  watchful  guards.  It  is  night,  and  the  prison 
lamp  sheds  a  dubious  gleam  through  the  dungeon.  On  the  pale, 
thoughtful  face  of  the  captive  is  the  imj)ress  of  deep,  varying  emo- 
tions. Of  what  does  the  doomed  man  dream  ?  Is  it  of  the  home 
and  associates  of  his  boyhood's  careless  hours,  of  the  green  mead- 
ows which  he  shall  never  more  behold ;  of  the  mountain  lakes,  on 
whose  shores  he  has  so  often  gathered  the  wild  flowers  of  his  native 
land ;  of  the  rivers  whose  murmuring  music  shall  never  again  en- 
chant his  ear?  or  is  it  of  his  approaching  trial,  and  the  gloomy  shad- 
ows that  lie  beyond  ?  Far  different  is  the  subject  of  his  thoughts. 
On  the  little  table  before  him  is  a  lock  of  braided  hair,  the  gift  of 
one  on  whom  he  had  lavished  the  affection  of  his  generous  nature  ; 
of  one  who  never  deserted  him  in  the  darkest  period  of  his  advers- 
ity ;  and  whose  heart,  in  after  years  like  a  crystal  stream,  mirrored 
her  young  hero's  image.  He  had  prized  the  gift  in  happier  days ; 
and  now  he  treasured  it  as  the  last  relic  of  a  love,  pure  and  radiant 
as  the  light  of  the  morning  star.  The  trial  of  Emmet  ;  the  vindic- 
tive temper  of  Lord  Norbury,  the  judge  who  presided  over  the 
court;  the  eloquent  defence  of  the  prisoner,  and  his  more  than 
Spartan  firmness ;  form  an  instructive  page  in  the  history  of  Ire- 
land. He  was  condemned.  His  youth,  his  genius,  and  the  moral 
sublimity  of  his  character,  were  unavailing  to  alter  the  stern  resolve 
of  the  government.  The  sanguinary  policy  of  England  demanded 
a  noble  victim;  and  the  sacrifice  was  decreed.  He  died  on  the 
scaffold  in  the  twenty-fifth  year  of  his  age.  Calm  and  unmoved, 
his  heroic  soul  passed  from  time  to  eternity — from  earth  to  heaven. 

* '  Tis  come — his  liour  of  maTtyrdom 
In  freedom's  sacred  cause  is  come  ; 
And  though  his  life  hath  passed  away, 
Like  lightning  on  a  stormy  day, 
Yet  shall  his  death-hour  leave  a  track 
Of  glory  permanent  and  bright, 
To  which  the  brave  of  aftertimes, 
The  suffering  brave,  shall  long  look  back 
With  proud  regi-et,  and  by  its  hght 
Watch  through  the  hours  of  slavery's  night 
For  vengeance  on  the  oppressor's  crimes." 

The  record  of  distinguished  j^ersonages  who  have  illustrated  the 
name  and  character  of  Ireland,  is  not  confined  to  the  British  Em- 
pire. The  race  of  Erin  has  been  scattered  over  the  globe,  and  al- 
most every  country  of  the  civilized  world  has  profited  by  its  labor, 
energy  and  talent.  All  the  nations  of  modern  Europe  will  attest 
the  fact.  Our  own  country  has  been  in  a  preeminent  degree  the 
theatre  on  which  natives  of  Ireland  and  their  descendants  have  ex- 
hibited some  of  the  noblest  qualities  of  humanity.  In  the  revolu- 
tionary war  no  class  of  our  citizens  was  more  active,  or  made  great- 
er sacrifices  of  fortune  and  life.     Seven  of  the  fifty -six  signers  of 


FRANK   TILFORD.  295 

the  Declaration  of  Independence  were  of  Irish  origin;  ainong  them 
Charles  Can-oil  of  Carrollton.  The  names  of  at  least  two  Irishmen 
of  revolution aiy  memory  are  entitled  to  the  veneration  of  all  who 
claim  any  share  in  the  inheritance  of  American  libert3^  One  of 
them  is  Kichard  Montgomery,  the  protomartyr  of  tlie  war  of  inde- 
pendence. When  hostilities  commenced  he  was  in  the  vigor  of 
manhood,  in  affluence,  dwelling  in  a  home  embellished  with  all  the 
luxuries  of  wealth  and  refinement  of  taste,  and  endeared  to  him 
through  the  tenderest  affections.  He  sacrificed  every  enjoyment  at 
the  summons  of  his  adopted  countiy.  As  you  are  aware,  Mont- 
gomery commanded  a  division  of  the  American  army  in  the  attack 
on  Quebec,  the  last  night  of  the  year  seventeen  hundred  and  seven- 
ty-five. The  scene  must  have  been  grand  and  awe-inspiring. 
The  frozen  river,  rocks  and  trees  were  draped  in  a  snowy  mantle; 
dense  clouds  enveloped  the  sky;  the  wind  sighed  like  a  funeral 
dirge  through  the  leafless  forest^nature's  lament  for  the  gallant 
men  who  were  marching  with  firm  step  to  inevitable  death.  By 
daylight  Montgomery's  division  reached  a  height  known  as  Diamond 
Point,  and  here  the  engagement  commenced.  At  the  first  discharge 
of  the  enemy's  guns  Montgomery  fell,  mortally  wounded.  Several 
hours  aftersvards  a  party  of  English  soldiers  found  the  dead  body  of 
the  American  commander.  The  unconquerable  spirit  of  the  hero 
was  manifested  in  death,  for  his  frozen  hand  still  grasped  the 
sword,  and  pointed  towards  the  fortress  of  Quebec.  Forty  years 
after  his  death  Montgomery's  remains  were  interred  in  Trinity. 
Church,  New  York.  The  highest  honors,  civil  and  military',  were 
rendered  to  his  memory^,  but  his  noblest  elegy  is  found  in  the 
record  of  his  death. 

Another  man  of  the  revolution  is  entitled  to  our  especial  admi- 
ration— Commodore  John  Barry,  a  native  of  county  Wexford, 
Ireland.  He  commanded  the  first  vessel  of  war  that  ever  sailed  un- 
der the  United  States  flag,  and  has  been  styled  the  ' '  Tartar  of  the 
American  Navy. ''  Volumes  could  not  speak  more  in  his  praise  than 
is  contained  in  one  incident  of  his  career.  Lord  Howe  endeavored 
to  entice  him  from  his  allegiance  to  the  United  States,  by  the  offer 
of  an  immense  bribe  in  money,  and  a  command  of  a  British  ship 
of  the  line.  His  answer  was  in  these  words  :  "Sir,  I  have  devoted 
myself  to  the  cause  of  my  country,  and  not  the  value  or  command 
of  the  whole  British  fleet  can  seduce  me  from  it. "  A  noble  senti- 
ment ;  and  the  man  who  uttered  it  deserves  a  lofty  niche  in  the 
Pantheon  of  History. 

Permit  only  a  single  additional  allusion  to  an  American  citizen 
of  Irish  extraction.  He  was  a  young  and  humble  soldier  of  the 
revolution.  In  the  second  war  of  independence  his  sword  flashed 
in  victory  upon  the  plains  of  Chalmette.  His  tomb  in  the  peaceful 
shade  of  the  Hermitage,  has  become  the  Mecca  of  American  pil- 
grims. In  future  ages,  when  monuments  shall  be  erected  to  the 
memory  of  heroes  who  loved  and  served  their  country,  on  the  tall- 
est column  will  be  inscribed  the  simple  and  unadorned,  yet  resist- 
less, name   of   "Andrew  Jackson."     The   Irish   as  a  people,   have 


296  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC, 

been  remarkable  from  the  earliest  period  for  their  aptitude  as  sol- 
diers. The  impulsive  ardor  and  quickness  of  intellect  which  they 
exhibit  in  the  social  relations  of  life,  eminently  fit  them  to  learn  the 
arts  and  discipline  of  war,  and  impel  them  onward  in  the  hour  of 
strife  with  fervent  and  irrepressible  zeal.  Does  not  history  confirm 
the  truth  of  the  assertion?  After  the  treaty  of  Limerick,  in  sixteen 
hundred  and  ninety-one,  the  gallant  Sarsfield  and  some  four  thous- 
and of  his  companions,  despairing  of  liberty  in  their  native  land, 
migrated  to  other  countries  in  Europe.  The  exodus  continued  dur- 
ing the  eighteenth  century.  Nearly  all  these  exiles  adopted  a  mili- 
tary career,  and  were  formed  into  regiments  and  brigades  under 
Irish  commanders.  They  performed  prodigies  of  valor  in  the  ar- 
mies of  Austria,  France  and  Prussia. 

A  learned  historian  who  wrote  in  the  last  century,  estimates  the 
number  of  Irishmen  that  have  died  in  the  military  service  of  France 
at  six  hundred  thousand.  When  Maria  Theresa,  Queen  of  Hunga- 
ry, instituted  fifty  crosses  of  the  legion  to  be  given  to  men  who 
should  most  distinguish  themselves  in  her  wars,  forty-six  were  won 
and  worn  by  natives  of  Ireland.  At  the  battle  of  Fontenoy  in 
seventeen  hundred  and  forty-five,  the  ready  sagacity  of  an  Irish 
general,  seconded  by  the  gallantry  of  his  troops,  secured  a  magnifi- 
cent triumph  for  the  House  of  Bourbon,  and  saved  from  subjuga- 
tion the  country  of  his  adoption.  "Within  the  last  fifty  years,  the 
soldiers  of  the  Emerald  Isle  have  inscribed  the  renown  of  their 
prowess  and  resistless  courage  on  the  plains  of  Waterloo  and  the 
crumbling  walls  of  Sebastopol. 

We  have  now  traversed  a  wide  track  of  history,  and  glanced 
at  some  of  the  prominent  events  and  illustrious  names  that  are 
radiant  links  in  the  chain  which  unites  the  sad  yet  glorious 
past  to  the  living  present  of  Ireland.  Nearly  all  the  persons  men- 
tioned sprang  from  the  ranks  of  the  people,  and  may  be  deemed 
representative  men  of  the  day  and  generation  in  which  they  liv- 
ed. In  their  respective  careers  we  trace  much  of  the  genius  and 
weakness,  errors  and  virtues,  of  the  Irish  character.  Universal 
experience  teaches  us  the  lesson  that  we  must  judge  of  a  nation 
by  the  qualities  of  its  popular  leaders.  Thus  I'rance,  in  the  last 
seventy-five  years,  has  experienced  the  throes  of  three  great  revo- 
lutions, and  the  ruling  spirits  who  conducted  the  several  move- 
ments dilTer  not  more  widely,  than  did  the  temper  and  intelligence 
of  the  French  at  the  date  of  these  revolutions.  In  Eobespierre, 
Danton,  Leinthon,  and  Murat,  we  have  types  of  the  fierce  and 
sanguinar}^  disposition  of  the  French  populace  toward  the  close  of 
the  eighteenth  century;  while  in  Lafayette,  and  his  compeers  in 
eighteen  hundred  and  thirty,  and  still  later  in  Cavaignac  and  La- 
martine,  we  have  representatives  of  the  higher  intelligence  and 
purer  morality  of  the  same  nation.  How  many  centuries  must 
elapse  before  Eussia  will  produce  a  Goldsmith,  a  Sheridan,  a  Burke, 
or  an  Emmet?  Certainly  the  Irish,  as  a  people,  are  not  imbued 
with  the  qualities — sordid  virtues,  if  the  term  may  be  allowed — of  a 
purely  trading  community.     A  prudent  regard  for  the  accumulation 


FRANK    TILFORD.  297 

of  wealth  and  worldly  wisdom  are  not  among  their  distinguishing 
traits;  but  in  the  absence  of  such  qualities,  we  find  'pietj,  hospi- 
tality, charity  for  the  afflicted,  love  of  country,  devotion  to  liberty, 
a  contempt  for  death,  and  fidelity  to  their  moral  and  honorable 
obligations,  at  every  place  and  in  all  classes  in  Ireland.  These  are 
the  virtues  which  a  Cato  or  Lycurgus  would  cherish  in  a  race,  and 
constitute  the  basis  of  independence  and  a  grand  nationality.  A 
country  may  be  rich  in  mines  of  gold  and  silver — in  all  the  treas- 
VLres  of  earth  and  sea;  its  navies  may  ride  the  billows  of  every 
ocean  from  the  polar  circles  to  the  equator;  iron-clad  citadels  and 
immense  armies  protect  its  frontiers;  yet,  unless  the  noble  qualities, 
the  more  exalted  virtues  we  hava  recited,  enter  into  and  foiTu  the 
national  character,  it  can  never  preserve  liberty  and  tranquilhty  at 
home,  enjoy  an  enduring  prosperity,  or  repel  the  aggressions  of 
mere  warlike  nations. 

But  why  comment  further  on  the  elements  of  Irish  character? 
You  who  have  sprung  from,  or  resided  amongst  the  noble  peasantry 
of  the  Emerald  Isle,  and  all  in  whose  veins  there  is  a  drop  of  Milesian 
blood,  must  feel  that  in  their  inmost  hearts  are  altars  where  live 
the  glowing  embers  of  the  sacred  flame  which  has  shed  the  halo  of 
an  immortal  renown  on  the  pathways  of  Erin.  We  have  seen  that 
Ireland  possesses  an  ample  population  and  all  the  physical  resources 
needed  to  maintain  the  rank  of  an  independent  government.  His- 
tory demonstrates  that  her  people  are  endowed  with  a  degree  of  ca- 
pacity, intelligence  and  virtue  that  will  compare  favorably  with  any 
nation  of  ancient  or  modern  times.  One  question  alone  remains  for 
consideration — have  the  people  of  Ireland  ever  surrendered  to  the 
English  Government  their  natural  and  inherent  rights,  or  have  they 
committed  any  act  whereby  they  justly  forfeited  their  claim  to  na- 
tionality? The  advocates  of  Irish  independence  base  their  argu- 
ments upon  a  platform  of  indisputable  facts.  They  point  to  the 
Declaration  of  Independence  made  by  the  Irish  House  of  Commons 
on  the  IGth  of  April,  1782,  and  ratified  the  same  year  by  the  King 
and  Parliament  of  Great  Britain.  They  ask  when  and  where  did 
Ireland  sunender  that  Magna  Charta  of  her  freedom,  or  rehnquish 
to  England  the  privileges  acknowledged  and  secured  by  it? 

It  is  a  proud  satisfaction  to  review  the  circumstances  which  pre- 
ceded and  attended  the  Act  of  Independence.  England  was  en- 
gaged in  a  war  with  Spain  and  France;  the  fleets  of  the  latter  power 
infested  the  channel  and  seas  which  surround  the  British  coast. 
The  result  of  the  American  war  had  not  only  wrested  from  Eng- 
land the  fairer  portion  of  her  domains  in  the  New  World,  but  had 
seriously  impaired  the  prestige  of  her  ancient  military  renown. 
The  debt  of  the  Empire  had  been  largely  augmented,  its  resources 
diminished,  and  taxes  of  every  description  ruinously  multiplied. 
Everywhere  in  the  British  dominions  was  a  restless  and  rebelious 
spirit  which  boded  evil  to  the  trembling  house  of  Hanover.  This 
was  the  hour  of  England's  necessity — and  here  was  Ireland's  oppor- 
tunity. The  people  of  Ireland  instantly  seized  upon  the  occasion. 
Never  did  a  nation  exhibit  a  more  determined  zeal  in  the  cause  of 


298  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

Liberty.  The  streets  of  the  Metropolis  presented  a  truly  gorgeous 
appearance  on  the  day  which  witnessed  the  Declaration  of  Irish  In- 
dependence. Learned  societies  and  civil  associations,  with  banners 
and  suitable  devices,  marched  along  the  principal  avenues  to  assem- 
ble in  compact  array  before  the  Hall  of  the  National  Assembly; 
Battalions  of  the  Irish  volunteers,  splendidly  armed  and  uniformed, 
escorted  the  civil  procession.  The  Eeverend  Clergy,  Protestant  and 
Catholic,  walked  in  the  ranks  of  the  people,  and  hallowed  the  occa- 
sion with  prayers  and  benedictions.  A  sublime  scene  was  presented 
in  the  House  of  Commons.  An  immense  gallery,  supported  by  Tus- 
can pillars,  surrounded  the  Chamber.  Here  was  gathered  the  elite 
of  the  beauty  and  chivalry  of  Ireland.  In  the  rotunda,  below,  the 
representatives  of  the  Kingdom  were  assembled.  It  was  a  solemn 
hour  in  the  life-time  of  a  nation.  A  step  was  to  be  taken  towards 
freedom.  An  act  was  meditated,  which  if  resisted  by  the  Govern- 
ment, entailed  on  the  land  all  the  horrors  of  war.  In  success  there 
was  permanent  glory;  in  failure  irretrievable  disaster.  The  illustri- 
ous Grrattan  was  by  general  consent  the  leader  of  the  patriots.  Af- 
ter an  oration  which  has  been  pronounced  the  most  luminous,  bril- 
liant and  effective  ever  delivered  in  an  Irish  assembly,  he  concluded 
by  moving  in  the  address  to  the  King,  a  declaration  to  the  effect 
that  Ireland  could  be  bound  only  by  laws  enacted  by  an  Irish  Parlia- 
ment. It  was  carried  without  a  dissenting  voice,  and  ratified  the 
same  year  by  the  English  Government.  In  the  first  month  of  the 
subsequent  year,  the  Imperial  Parliament,  in  order  to'  remove  all 
doubt  on  the  subject,  enacted  a  statute  whereby  it  was  solemnly  de- 
clared :  ' '  The  right  claimed  by  the  people  of  Ireland  to  be  bound  on- 
ly by  the  laws  enacted  by  his  Majesty  and  Parliament  of  Ireland, 
in  all  cases  whatever,  shall  be,  and  is  hereby  declared  to  be,  estab- 
lished and  ascertained  forever,  and  shall  at  no  time  hereafter  be 
questioned,  or  questionable. " 

"We  percieve  in  these  measures  all  the  essential  elements  of  a 
treaty,  a  compact  between  distinct  and  sovereign  nations,  an  act  by 
which  England  recognized  the  independence  of  Ireland,  and  re- 
nounced forever  all  Legislative  pretension.  For  eighteen  years  af- 
ter the  passage  of  this  celebrated  measure,  the  Island  enjoyed  an 
interval  of  tranquillity,  liberty  and  prosperity.  But,  alas  !  the  days 
of  Erin's  happiness  were  numbered.  This  repose  was  only  the 
treacherous  calm  that  precedes  the  tempest — the  unnatural  sleep 
which  ends  in  final  dissolution.  The  Imperial  Government,  under 
the  administration  of  William  Pitt,  had  resolved  to  subvert  the  lib- 
erties and  destroy  the  nationality  of  Ireland.  The  awakened  culti- 
vation, growing  manufactures,  and  expanding  trade  of  Ireland, 
competed  too  successfully  with  similar  j)ursuits  in  England.  Lord 
Cornwallis  was  then  Viceroy,  and  Lord  Castlereagh,  afterwards 
Marquis  of  Londonderry,  Secretary  of  State  for  Ireland.  Cornwal- 
lis was  noted  only  as  a  courageous,  but  unsuccessful  soldier,  who 
had  command  in  America  and  the  East  Indies;  Castlereagh  distin- 
guished as  a  man  of  commanding  presence  and  seductive  address, 
with  a  consummate  talent  for  intrigue  and  diplomacy.     Such  were 


FRANK   TILFORD.  299 

the  men  whom  the  English  Minister  selected  to  devise  means  for 
the  subversion  of  Irish  Independence.  Their  vocation  was  the 
same,  but  on  the  award  of  impartial  history  the  infamy  of  one  far 
exceeds  am^  odium  which  may  be  attached  to  the  other.  The  Lord 
Lieutenant  was  a  native  of  England,  and  naturally  regarded  the 
interest  of  that  Kingdom  and  the  wishes  of  "Majesty,"  as  para- 
mount considerations.  Then,  too,  as  a  soldier,  his  first  duty  was 
obedience  to  the  orders  of  his  government.  But  for  Castle- 
reagh,  charity  can  devise  no  apology.  He  was  a  native  of  the  Is- 
land, had  been  a  patriot,  was  a  nobleman  whose  wealth  placed  him 
above  all  sordid  temptation,  and  whose  ancestral  honors  identified 
him  with  the  glory  and  liberties  of  his  country.  Wickedly,  delib- 
erately, and  with  a  resolution  which  never  faltered,  Castlereagh 
labored  to  subvert  the  freedom  of  Ireland.  He  succeeded  !  Yet  a 
signal  retribution  awaited  him  even  in  this  life.  In  after  years, 
conscience  harrowed  his  soul  and  allowed  him  no  repose.  In  parlia- 
ment, at  the  banquet,  in  the  Court,  amid  scenes  of  splendor  and 
gayety,  spectres  of  his  murdered  victims  pursued  the  wretch;  in  his 
slumbers  he  heard  the  curses  of  the  country  he  betrayed,  and  a  voice 
bade  him,  like  the  tyrant  of  Scotland,  *' sleep  no  more."  The 
means  which  the  Lord  Lieutenant  and  his  Secretary  adopted  to 
effect  the  passage  through  the  Irish  Parliament  of  the  "Act  of  Uni- 
on, "  were  just  such  as  might  have  been  exj)ected,  and  are  familiar 
to  all  who  have  studied  the  annals  of  that  period.  Intimidation 
and  bribery  constituted  their  entire  system.  The  first  was  intended 
for  the  nation  at  large.  In  pursuance  of  the  project,  the  standing 
army  was  suddenly  increased  from  fifty  thousand  to  one  hundred 
and  seventy  thousand  men.  A  reign  of  terror  was  inaugurated  on 
the  ruins  of  constitutional  liberty.  The  writ  of  habeas  corpus  vv^as 
suspended,  and  martial  law  declared  at  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord 
Lieutenant;  public  meetings  were  often  dispersed  at  the  point  of 
the  bayonet;  persons  were  arrested  without  judgment  of  court  or 
process  of  law,  and  incarcerated  in  loathsome  dungeons  until  death 
released  them,  or  the  caprice  of  their  tyrants  opened  their  prison 
gates.  An  army  of  informers  and  spies,  issuing  from  the  Vice  Roy- 
al Palace  in  Dublin,  swanned  through  the  land,  and  diffused  over 
all  circles  of  society  an  atmosphere  of  dread  and  susj)icion.  We 
learn  that  during  two  yeai-s  which  immediately  i^receded,  and  in  the 
course  of  the  six  years  subsequent  to  the  "Act  of  Union,"  more 
than  one  hundred  thousand  persons,  accused  of  political  offences, 
died  in  prison  and  upon  the  scaffold,  or  were  transported  in  convict 
ships  to  the  penal  settlement  of  Australia.  We  shudder  at  the  ex- 
cesses of  revolutionary  France;  we  mourn  over  the  fallen  liberties 
of  Poland;  we  execrate  the  cruelties  of  Austria  to  the  States  of 
Italy  and  Hungary;  but  we  forget  that  in  our  own  age  the  govern- 
ment of  his  most  Christian  Majesty,  George  III  inflicted  on  the 
people  of  Ireland  atrocities  beside  which  the  cruelties  of  Russia  and 
Austria  appear  like  gracious  deeds  of  mercy.  While  armed  force 
was  used  to  overawe  the  popular  mind,  and  coerce  the  nation  into 
submission,  the  subtle  arts  of  corruption  were  applied  to  the  nobles 


300  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

and  the  Irish.  House  of  Commons.  Immense  sums  of  money,  rang- 
ing from  ten  thousand  to  twenty  thousand  pounds  sterling,  were 
paid  for  the  vote  of  a  single  borough  in  Parliament.  Of  the  one 
hundred  and  eighty  members  who  voted  in  the  House  for  the  Union, 
history  has  perpetuated  the  names  of  more  than  one  hundred  and 
forty  who  were  bribed,  and  the  price  which  each  received  for  the 
desertion  of  his  God,  the  betrayal  of  his  country,  and  the  sacrilice 
of  his  honor.  The  act  to  establish  a  * 'Legislative  Union  between 
Great  Britain  and  Ireland,''  was  adopted.  By  the  passage  of  it,  the 
Magna  Chai^ta  of  Irish  liberty  was  annulled,  the  independence  of  the 
nation  was  abrogated,  and  the  entire  legislation  of  the  Kingdom 
transferred  to  the  Parliament  at  Westminister.  No  impai-tial  rea- 
soner  will  contend  that  a  statute  wrested  by  intimidation  and  fraud 
from  a  reluctant  nation,  carries  with  it  any  moral  sanction.  It  is  a 
principle  of  jurisprudence,  acknowledged  by  the  law  of  nations  and 
maintained  in  the  municipal  code  of  every  enlightened  people,  that 
fraud  or  violence  annuls  all  obligations;  their  taint,  like  the  touch 
of  the  leper,  is  mortal  and  incurable.  From  the  day  of  its  passage 
until  the  present  hour,  Ireland  has  never  forgotten  the  means  that 
were  employed  to  procure  the  "Union,"  nor  abated  her  opposition 
to  the  measure.  The  cherished  ambition  of  O'Connell's  heart  was 
to  repeal  it.  Russell  and  Emmet  sacrificed  their  lives  to  destroy  it; 
and  fifty  years  later.  Smith  O'Brien  and  his  noble  associates  suffered 
banishment  rather  than  submit  to  it.  Ireland  has  seen  since  the 
enactment  of  the  law,  and  traceable  directly  to  the  malign  influence 
of  it,  her  manufactures  perish,  her  trade  decline,  her  revenues 
drained  from  their  native  shore,  and  her  children  driven  from  their 
homes  by  the  demons  of  want  and  penury  to  wander  over  the  face 
of  the  earth. 

The  last  and  most  terrible  misery  which  the  Union  has  inflicted 
on  unhappy  Ireland,  occurred  within  our  own  recollection.  Who 
can  forget  the  wretchedness  of  Ireland  in  the  years  of  her  famine. 
Who  will  forget  that  the  English  Government  was  warned  months 
in  advance  of  the  impending  calamity;  and  that  the  statesmen  of 
Ireland  petitioned  the  Court  and  Cabinet  of  St.  James  to  prohibit 
the  export  of  cereals  from  the  Island,  and  that  the  peasants  and  la- 
boring men  entreated  their  Imperial  tyrants  for  relief;  not  for  alms 
but  for  work,  and  the  means  of  supporting  life  as  the  wages?  The 
appeal  was  unheeded.  At  first  the  deaths  were  few,  then  increasing, 
until  each  revolving  day  beheld  the  corpses  of  hundreds,  who  fam- 
ished from  absolute  want  and  the  diseases  attendant  on  it.  Then 
Ireland,  the  Niobe  of  nations,  forsaken  by  her  rulers,  smitten  by  the 
rod  of  famine  and  the  breath  of  pestilence,  uttered  a  cry  of  anguish 
at  which  the  world  grew  pale. 

We  need  not  linger  on  those  days  and  scenes  of  unparalleled 
suffering.  We  know,  however,  that  they  form  only  a  chapter  in  the 
annals  of  English  connection  with  Ireland,  and  that  every  page  of 
the  volume  is  replete  with  acts  of  violence  and  misgovernmeni 
The  footprints  of  the  Norman  and  Saxon  may  be  traced  in  blood 
on  the  shores  of  Erin.     Every  mountain,  glen,  or  moldering  ruin 


FRANK    TILFORD.  301 

in  the  Emerald  Isle  bears  a  legend,  and  a  memory  of  the  remorseless 
invader.  The  traditions  and  plaintive  songs  of  the  people  breathe 
of  glories  depai-ted  and  wrongs  unforgiven.  The  iniined  shrines  of 
her  deserted  churches,  and  the  graves  of  her  martyred  heroes, 
speak  to  Ireland  of  woe  and  oppression.  Shall  they  speak  in  vain? 
Shall  the  home  of  Sheridan  and  Grattan,  of  CuiTan  and  Moore, 
remain  forever  a  province  of  England,  and  the  heritage  of  the  spoil- 
er? Forbid  it  Earth  !  Forbid  it  Heaven  !  No :  by  the  memoiy  of 
her  ancient  renown,  by  the  accumulated  vrrong  of  centuries,  by  all 
that  is  sacred  in  the  past,  or  welcome  in  the  future,  let  us  swear 
that  Erin  shall  yet  be  free.  The  hour  may  be  deferred,  but  come  it 
must,  when  the  fiery  cross  shall  speed  through  the  Island,  and  sum- 
mon its  warlike  clans  to  rally  around  the  standard  of  the  Harp  and 
Sunburst.  Then,  when  the  beacon  fires  of  liberty  illume  the  dark- 
ness of  night,  and  cast  their  cadence  far  across  the  waters  of  the 
Atlantic,  let  Meagher,  Corcoran,  Shields  and  Mitchel,  erase  from 
their  swords  every  stain  of  fratricidal  strife,  and  lead  the  embattled 
hosts  of  their  countryTnen  to  the  rescue  of  Ireland.  A  hundred 
thousand  Irish  soldiers,  disciplined  in  the  wars  of  America  and  an- 
imated by  the  sacred  love  of  freedom,  will  vanquish  the  legions  of 
England,  as  the  Simoom  overwhelms  the  Caravans  of  the  desert. 

Natives  of  the  Emerald  Isle :  whose  hearts  so  often  wander  from 
these  tranquil  shores — to  the  scenes  of  your  childhood,  and  the 
homes  of  your  fathers,  prepare  for  the  day  that  is  dawning.  All 
have  a  solemn  duty  to  perform. 

Parents  from  the  Emerald  Isle :  teach  your  children  to  venerate 
and  cherish  the  name  of  Ireland;  learn  them  the  songs,  ballads  and 
traditions  of  your  native  land,  and  entwine  around  their  youthful 
hearts  devotion  to  the  liberties  of  America,  and  the  memories  of 
Erin. 

Maidens  of  the  Emerald  Isle:  when  in  the  twilight  hour  you 
chant  a  vesper  hymn  to  the  Virgin,  or  when  in  holy  church  your 
prayers  ascend  as  grateful  incense  to  Heaven,  mingle  with  your  ori- 
sons a  prayer  that  Erin  may  yet  be  free  ! 

Friends  of  Ireland :  remember  that  discord  in  council  and  divis- 
sion  in  action,  have  been  deadlier  foes  to  the  Island  than  golden 
bribes  or  hostile  bayonets — enemies  fatal  and  pernicious  as  was: 

"The  fruit 
Of  that  forbidden  tree,  whose  mortal  taste 
Brought  death  into  the  world,  and  all  our  woe." 


Banish,  then,  personal  jealousies,  sectional  differences,  and  labor 
with  earnest  and  united  minds  for  the  emancipation  of  Ireland. 

Citizen  soldiers !  when  the  wires  shall  flash  across  the  continent 
the  glorious  intelligence  that  the  Irish  armies  of  the  Atlantic  are 
moving  in  the  cause  of  Erin's  Independence  stand  prepared  to  un- 
furl your  banners,  unsheath  your  gleaming  blades,  and  march  to  the 
deliverance  of  your  native  land.     When  the  etorm  of  conflict  shall 


302  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OP    THE    PACIPIC. 

rage,  and  the  clash  of  arms  resound  from  the  earth  to  the  skies — 
when  the  green  flag  of  Ireland  waves  in  triumph  above  the  Red 
Cross  of  St.  George,  may  the  column  of  the  Pacific  lead  the  van- 
guard of  liberty,  and  their  swords  flash  in  the  foremost  ranks 
of  victory. 

And  oh  !  in  future  ages,  when  the  warrior  bards  shall  strike  their 
golden  harps,  and  sing  of  battles  fought  and  triumphs  won  in  free- 
dom's holy  cause,  may  their  noblest  song  consecrate  to  immortal 
fame  the  names  and  deeds  of  the  Irish  volunteers  of  California.  • 


^^ 


*?^ 


-«■. 


CALEB    T.    FAY. 

By    the  ^ditoi^ 


FROM  the  date  of  the  admission  of  California  into  the 
Union  until  a  very  recent  period,  this  gentleman  has 
been  engaged  in  the'  successful  prosecution  of  mercantile 
pursuits  in  the  cities  of  Sacramento  and  San  Francisco. 
His  ancestors  werfe /among  the  ^  early  Massachusetts  pio- 
neers, and  settled  in  the  Eastern  pai*t^of  that  State  about 
the  year  1640.  His  father  was  a  nuerchant  and  farmer, 
and  qualified  all  his  sons  for  both  occupations. 

Caleb  T.  Fay  was  the  fifth  son  of  eight  children,  hav- 
ing six  brothers  and  a  sister.  He  was  born  at  Southbor- 
ough,  Worcester  County,  Massachusetts,  on  the  13th  day 
of  April,  1821.  He  worked  on  his  father's  farm  and  at- 
tended a  common  school  and  academy  until  he  attained 
majority;  he  then  entered  upon  mercantile  business,  to 
which  he  applied  himself  for  seven  years.  When  he  was 
twenty- eight  years  of  age,  the  ''fever"  consequent  upon 
the  discovery  of  gold  in  California,  began  to  rage  in  Mas- 
sachusetts with  nearly  as  much  violence  as  in  New  York; 
and,  yielding  to  its  influence,  Mr.  Fay  left  Boston  early 
in  the  spring  of  1849,  bound  for  the  Pacific  by  way  of 
Cape.  Horn.  He  felt  that  he  was  taking  leave  of  the 
''land  of  steady  habits, "  to  struggle  amid  a  multitude  of 
adventurous  men,  intoxicated  by  excitement  and  spurred 
bythe  ardent  desire  for  gain,  to  return,  after  a  few  years' 
hardships,  with  or  without  fortune,  to  his  and  his  fa- 
ther's home. 


304  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OP   THE   PACIFIC. 

He  little  thought  he  was  to  be  one  of  the  pioneers  of 
a  great  empire,  to  whose  development  his  efforts,  in  com- 
ing years,  would  be  devoted;  particularly,  when  he  re- 
flected that,  twenty-one  years  before  his  departure,  a  ship 
had  sailed  out  of  Boston  harbor  bound  for  Monterey,  Cal- 
ifornia, manned  by  American  seamen  and  commanded  by 
American  officers.  Verily  does  the  record  of  our  Pio- 
neers reach  far  back  into  the  Past. 

After  six  months'  sailing  on  the  Ocean — a  period  so 
long  that  he  had  become  almost  reconciled  to  his  "  home 
on  the  deep" — Mr.  Fay  arrived  at  San  Francisco  on  the 
same  day  that  the  representatives  of  the  people,  in  Con- 
gress assembled,  welcomed  California  into  the  family  of 
federal  States.  He  did  not  tarry  at  the  Bay  City,  but 
pushed  on  up  the  Sacramento  river  to  the  city  of  that 
name.  There  he  immediately  opened  a  house  for  the 
transaction  of  the  business  of  buying  and  selling  merchan- 
dise on  commission.  This  business  he  followed  in  Sacra- 
mento for  two  years ;  at  the  end  of  that  time  moving  to 
San  Francisco,  where  he  has  ever  since  resided. 

During  his  residence  at  Sacramento,  Mr.  Fay,  on  ac- 
count of  his  exemplary  habits,  and  strict  attention  to  bus- 
iness, was  universally  esteemed  as  a  merchant  of  shrewd- 
ness and  foresight,  and  a  man  of  strict  integrity.  He 
maintained  his  popularity,  notwithstanding  he  bore  the 
name  of  abolitionist — a  title  not  very  acceptable  in  those 
days.  The  following  incident  will  be  found  interesting, 
as  explaining  the  reason  why  this  name  was  given  him. 

It  will  be  remembered  that,  upon  the  admission  of  Cal- 
ifornia into  the  Union  as  a  free-labor  State,  owners  of 
slaves  then  in  the  State  were  allowed  by  law  a  limited  time 
within  which  they  might  remove  their  slaves.  Sometime 
in  1851  a  slaveholder  advertised  in  the  Sacramento  pa- 
pers that  he  had  for  sale  a  negro  man  for  whom  he  was 
willing  to  take  one  hundred  dollars ;  that  he  would  be  for 
sale  for  a  certain  number  of  days,  and  that,  if  the  negro 
were  not  purchased  in  that  time,  he  would  be  sent  back 
to  Alabama  to  continue  a  life  of  bondage ; — adding  to  the 
announcement  the  statement  that  those  gentlemen  who 
favored  the  abolition  of  slavery  and  professed  so  much 


CALEB   T.    FAY.  305 

sympathy  for  the  negro  would  now  have  an  opportunity 
to  show  their  philanthropy  and  generosity. 

Mr.  Fay,  upon  reading  the  advertisement,  determined 
to  liberate  the  darkey.  He  saw  Mr.  Winans.  his  attorney, 
now  a  lawyer  of  San  Francisco,  and  showed  him  the  no- 
tice—stating to  him  that  he  proposed  to  buy  the  negro 
as  soon  as  he  would  prepare  the  necessary  papers.  Mr. 
Winans  asked  to  be  ^^M  into  that  speculation^^'  '*Yery  well," 
said  Mr.  Fay,  ^'I  am  ready  to  pay  the  entire  sum,  but  if 
you  really  wish  to  join  me,  we  will  both  pay  an  equal 
amount,  and  let  the  fellow  go  free."  Mr.  Winans  pre- 
pared the  proper  document  and  the  two  gentlemen — 
practical  abolitionists — waited  on  the  ''massa,"  paid  the 
full  sum  asked,  and  bade  ''Julius  CaBsar"  go  on  his  way 
rejoicing. 

This  transaction  became  generally  known,  and  a  great 
many  people  believed  that  a  man  who  gave  money 
to  liberate  one  slave^  would  go  to  any  lengths  to  abolish 
slavery.  They  styled  Mr.  Fay  an  abolitionist,  and  indeed 
he  was  one,  but  not  in  the  contracted  sense  the  term  then 
denoted.  He  always  hated  slavery,  yet  was  entirely  free 
from  prejudice  against  the  Southern  people.  He  hailed 
them  as  ''Americans,  one  and  all."  It  was  not  for  the 
humiliation  of  the  slave-holding  population,  but  for  the 
destruction  of  the  "peculiar  institution,"  that  he  prayed. 
In  a  speech  delivered  many  years  after  the  transaction 
just  mentioned,  Mr.  Fay  used  these  terse  and  compact 
expressions. : 

"It  has  been  said  that  I  am  an  abolitionist.  To  this 
I  answer,  I  believe  in  the  doctrines  taught  by  Thomas 
Jefferson,  the  apostle  of  liberty,  and  I  endorse  the  Decla- 
ration of  Independence.  I  believe  in  the  dignity  and 
honor  of  free  labor,  and  repudiate  slave  labor  as  degrad- 
ing and  unjust  both  to  white  and  black ;  I  believe  in  the 
Divine  right  of  self-government,  and  that  submission  to 
the  will  of  the  majority  is  loyal t}^  to  liberty,  while  a  re- 
bellion against  a  constitutional  majority  is  a  strike  for 
despotism.  I  believe  Andrew  Jackson's  words  when  he 
swore,  by  the  Eternal,  that  rebellion  in  South  Carolina 
should  be  crushed.  But  I  do  not  now  advocate  and  never 
20 


306  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

have  advocated,  an  invasion  of  the  constitutional  rights 
of  the  South.  I  endorse  the  language  of  Henry  Clay  who 
said  ^that  slavery  should  never  be  extended  by  any 
act,  word  or  vote  of  his.'  I  believe  that  if  the  seceded 
States  had  presented  their  grievances  to  Congress,  in  a 
respectful,  legitimate,  constitutional  manner — their  griev- 
ances, if  genuine,  would  have  been  respectfully  heard, 
and  either  satisfactorily  redressed,  or  silenced  by  peaceful 
separation.  But  a  dictatorial  war-policy  has  been  inaugu- 
rated by  the  secessionists,  and  they  must  abide  the  conse- 
quences. Our  National  flag  must  again  float  upon  the 
towers  of  thirty-four  States — for  this  is  the  will  of  the 
sovereign  people.  These  are  my  sentiments  in  short 
hand.  Whatever  name  they  entitle  me  to,  I  am  willing 
to  accept." 

Upon  his  removal  to  San  Francisco,  Mr.  Fay  con- 
tinued the  business  of  commission  merchant  for  seven 
or  eight  years.  He  always  attended  closely  to  his  bus- 
iness duties,  and  was  rewarded  with  considerable  suc- 
cess ;  however,  his  mercantile  employments,  though  fully 
discharged,  never  monopolized  his  time.  He  watched 
with  interest  the  course  of  public  men,  the  progress  of 
political  parties,  and  events  of  national  importance.  His 
opinions  on  public  measures,  though  generally  in  advance 
of  public  sentiment,  were  always  expressed  candidly  and 
firmly.  From  early  manhood  he  had  been  friendly  to 
the  free  soil  movement.  When  the  Republican  party 
was  organized  in  California,  it  owed  its  efficiency  in  a 
great  degree  to  his  help  and  countenance. 

In  1860,  Mr.  Fay  received  the  Republican  nomination 
for  Mayor  of  San  Francisco.  At  the  time,  as  had  been 
the  case  for  several  years  previously,  the  municipal  gov- 
ernment was  entirely  controlled  by  the  powerful  organi- 
zation known  as  the  '^People's  Party."  Mr.  Fay  had 
been  an  active  supporter  of  this  party,  as  well  as  thou- 
sands of  other  Republicans  who  did  not  desire  that  poli- 
tics should  enter  at  all  into  the  local  elections.  But  the 
more  enthusiastic  and  resolute  of  the  Republicans  deter- 
mined to  maintain  their  party  organization  intact,  and  go 
before  the  people  with  a  full  ticket  nominated  on  the  Re- 


CALEB   T.   FAY.  307 

publican  platform.  Mr.  Fay,  as  stated,  was  nominated 
for  Mayor.  In  his  letter  of  acceptance,  the  nominee  gave, 
as  the  reason  for  leaving  the  People's  Party  organization, 
'^the  low  abuse  that  has  been  heaped  upon  high-minded, 
honorable  Republicans  who  happen  to  differ  in  opinion 
with  the  People's  Party  relative  to  local  nominations." 
He  further^  suggests  that  the  question :  Are  you  a  repub- 
lican  ?  be  put  to  the  People's  nominee,  Mr.  Teschemacher. 
If  he  answers  that  he  is  a  Republican,  then,  ''I  will  not  run  as 
a  candidate  against  a  Republican  possessing  the  ability 
and  integrity  of  the  People's  nominee."  The  question 
was  formally  put  to  Mr.  Teschemacher,  who  returned  an 
evasive  answer.  Thereupon  Mr.  Fay  led  his  little  battal- 
ion into  the  field,  and  as  was  expected,  was  mercilessly 
slaughtered  by  superior  numbers. 

The  following  year,  the  Republicans,  proud  of  their 
leader's  conduct  in  the  last  election,  again  placed  him 
before  the  people  as  a  candidate  for  Mayor,  but  the  result 
was  a  second  defeat  at  the  hands  of  the  old  foe. 

Mr.  Fay  represented  San  Francisco  in  the  lower  branch 
of  the  California  Legislature,  in  the  winter  of  1861-62. 
He  entered  the  halls  of  legislation  with  RefoRxM  as  his 
motto.  At  that  time  nearly  every  State  official  was  (in 
Mr.  Fay's  opinion,  at  least)  receiving  compensation  far 
beyond  his  due.  Upon  the  organization  of  the  Assembly, 
Mr.  Fay  suggested  the  idea,  and  procured  the  appoint- 
ment of  a  Retrenchment  Committee,  of  which  he  became 
the  chairman.  He  immediately  submitted  to  this  com- 
mittee a  bill  which  he  had  prepared,  to  reduce  the  pay 
of  State  officers,  members  of  the  Legislature,  Judges, 
Clerks,  &c.,  looking  to  a  sweeping  reduction  in  govern- 
ment expenditures. 

This  bill  was  approved  by  the  committee  and  intro- 
duced into  the  Assembly.  Upon  its  consideration,  a  se- 
vere struggle  ensued  between  the  champions  and  enemies 
of  reform.  The  author  of  the  measure  labored  untiringly 
to  secure  its  passage.  The  difficulties  and  embarrassments 
with  which  he  had  to  contend,  were  enough  to  discourage 


308  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

and  even  appall  a  heart  less  stout  and  determined.  There 
was  an  organized  and  powerful  opposition  to  the  measure, 
and  during  its  pendency,  influential  and  interested  office- 
holders from  every  part  of  the  State  visited  the  Capital,  and 
gave  their  time  and  means  to  defeat  the  bill.  The  odds 
were  too  heavy  and  could  not  be  withstood.  Although 
the  bill  once  passed  the  Assembly,  it  was  reconsidered, 
and  failed  to  become  a  law. 

Another  important  bill,  prepared  and  introduced  by 
Mr.  Fay,  was  the  Act  to  create  Townships  throughout  the 
State,  and  to  regulate  and  define  the  powers  and  duties 
of  Township  officers.  The  State  Constitution  had  pro- 
vided for  the  creation  of  townships  throughout  the  State, 
but  hitherto  the  Legislature  had  failed  to  carry  out  this 
plain  provision  of  the  Constitution.  Mr.  Fay  brought 
the  matter  before  the  Retrenchment  Committee,  and 
through  his  exertions,  the  bill  became  a  law.  The  new 
order  of  things  created  by  this  measure,  the  decided  ad- 
vantages and  benefits  resulting  therefrom  to  the  people- 
particularly  to  those  who  dwell  in  counties  of  extended 
area — are  so  necessary  and  indispensable,  that  it  is  mat- 
ter for  wonder  that  this  bill  did  not  become  a  law  years 
prior  to  its  passage. 

Mr.  Fay  also  introduced  an  Act  to-amend  the  Crim- 
inal Practice  Act,  so  as  to  admit  colored  testimony  in 
criminal  cases,  which  passed  the  Assembly  but  was  lost 
in  the  Democratic  Senate.  He  took  the  lead  in  advocacy 
of  this  measure  and  made  an  able  argument  in  its  behalf. 

But,  perhaps,  the  most  important  measure  submitted 
to  the  Legislature  by  Mr.  Fay,  was  the  Act  entitled  ''An 
Act  for  the  disposition  and  improvement  of  the  Water 
Front  of  the  City  and  County  of  San  Francisco,  and  for 
the  accommodation  of  the  Shipping  and  Commerce  of  the 
Port  of  San  Francisco."  He  conceived  the  happy  idea 
of  making  the  valuable  water  front  of  the  City  a  source 
of  perpetual  profit  to  the  City  and  State.  This  extensive 
property  was  yielding  a  mere  pittance,  annually,  while 
uncler  Mr.  Fay's  bill  it  could  not  but  yield  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  dollars.  It  will  not  be  too  much  to  say  that 
this  measure  was  great  in  its  conception  and  noble  in  its 


CALEB   T.    FAY.  309 

design.  But  as  had  been  the  case  in  the  effort  to  reduce 
the  salaries  of  State  officials,  so  it  was  in  this ;  the  author 
of  the  bill  was  brought  into  inevitable  conflict  with  a  host 
of  interested  parties  who  had  private  ends  to  promote, 
and  who  proved  too  formidable  to  be  overcome.  The 
bill  was  defeated  at  that  session  of  the  Legislature,  but 
was  again  introduced  during  the  following  session  by  Mr. 
Oulton,  and  passed  into  a  law.  It  is  generally  known  by 
the  name  of  the  ^'Oulton  Bill." 

To  show  the  public  importance  and  advantage  of  this 
measure,  it  is  only  necessary  to  state  that,  before  its  pas- 
sage, the  income  derived  by  the  City  from  its  wharves 
and  property  along  the  City  front,  only  amounted  to  about 
fifteen  thousand  dollars  per  annum;  and  since  its  enact- 
ment, the  receipts  from  the  same  source  have  averaged 
annually  over  four  hwidred  thousand  dollars! 

In  an  interesting  notice  of  Mr.  Fay's  legislative  record, 
the  San  Francisco  Evening  Bulletin^  of  May  30th,  1862,  al- 
ternately extols  and  depreciates  its  subject.  It  states 
among  other  things,  that,  ''Mr.  Fay  can  unquestionably 
be  classed  among  the  working  and  talking  class,  two  char- 
acteristics not  often  united  in  one  person.  He  probably 
performed  more  hard  labor,  in  committee  and  out  of  it, 
than  any  other  member  of  the  Assembly — certainly  of  the 
delegation;  and  we  might  also  add,  to  less  practical  pur- 
pose. He  was,  from  the  commencement  to  the  end  of  the 
session,  untiring  in  industry;  but  there  is,  unfortunately, 
an  impracticable  or  crotchety  vein  in  his  character,  which 
seriously  militates  against  his  usefulness  to  his  constitu- 
ents or  to  the  State  at  large." 

It  is  very  easy  to  understand  how  a  reputation  for 
impracticability  could  be  acquired  by  a  man  who  entered 
the  California  Legislature  eight  years  ago,  resolute  in  the 
purpose  to  promote  the  public  weal  at  the  sacrifice  of  all 
private  ends  and  ambition. 

The  writer  has  no  desire  to  attribute  to  his  subject 
qualities  greater  than  those  he  really  possesses — at  the 
same  time,  it  is  his  province  and  duty  to  credit  him  with 
all  his  virtues,  even  if  it  forces  him  to  join  issue  with  a 
journal  of  no  less  respectability  and  influence  than  that 


BIO  REPRESENTATIVE   IdJEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

named  above.  The  charge  that  Caleb  T.  Fay  is  imprac- 
tical in  his  ideas,  certainly  can  have  no  stable  foundation. 
The  son  of  a  laborious,  practical  and  successful  farmer 
and  merchant,  inured  to  toil  from  his  early  boyhood,  ac- 
customed to  deal  with  facts  and  figures  through  a  long 
and  prosperous  mercantile  career,  he  has  had  no  time  to 
dream ^  or  yield  to  the  influence  of  Utopian  views.  It  has 
been  stated  that  his  excellent  measure  for  the  general  re- 
duction of  salaries  of  ofiice  could  and  would  have  passed 
the  Legislature,  if  the  members  of  that  body  had  been 
exempted  from  its  provisions;  and  that  the  hope  of  re- 
election moved  the  representatives  of  the  people  to  de- 
feat the  bill.  To  this  it  may  be  conclusively  answered, 
that  Mr.  Fay  could  not  concede  this  point  to  the  hopeful 
aspirants  for  future  honors,  simply  because  the  concession 
would  have  been  grounded  upon  personal  interest.  There 
was  as  much  cause  for  reducing  the  pay  of  legislators  as 
that  of  the  Governor,  or  any  other  officer  of  the  State ;  and 
had  Mr.  Fay  specially  excepted  the  former  from  the  oper- 
ations of  his  bill,  his  immediate  constituency , and  the 
people  at  large  would  have  justly  suspected  his  good  faith. 
Being  universally  recognized  as  an  active  and  leading 
Republican,  and  having  in  the  Presidential  campaign  of 
1860  labored  earnestly  to  secure  the  election  of  Mr.  Lin- 
coln, the  latter,  upon  the  organization  of  the  Internal 
Revenue  Department  in  1862,  appointed  Mr.  Fay  to  the 
position  of  Assessor  of  Internal  Revenue  for  the  First  Dis- 
trict of  California.  He  assumed  the  duties  of  the  office 
in  August,  1862,  and  served  through  Mr.  Lincoln's  first 
term  of  office;  and  it  is  but  just  to  say  that  he  was  one 
of  the  most  efficient  and  popular  Federal  officers  that 
ever  held  place  as  a  civil  appointment  under  the  LTnited 
States'  Government  in  California;  his  practical  business 
tact  and  experience  reduced  the  chaotic  Internal  Revenue 
workings  to  a  proper  system  in  his  District.  But  about 
the  time  of  Mr.  Lincoln's  assassination,  Mr.  Fay  was  re- 
moved at  the  instance  of  Commissioner  Lewis,  who  was 
influenced  by  designing  men,  and  who  yielded  to  their 
misrepresentations,  thereby  doing  injustice  to  a  faith- 
ful public  servant.     Commissioner  Lewis,  however,  was 


CALEB   T.    FAY.  311 

subsequently  magnanimous  enough  to  state  to  a  Commit- 
tee of  Merchants  appointed  to  inquire  into  the  cause 
of  the  removal — that  while  declining  to  give  the  reason 
for  the  same,  he  assured  them  there  were  no  charges  af- 
fecting Mr.  Fay's  character  or  personal  integrity — while 
the  committee  of  investigation  eulogized  his  conduct  of 
the  Assessor's  office  as  just,  upright  and  able  in  every 
respect. 

In  1863,  while  holding  the  position  of  Assessor,  Mr. 
Fay  was  brought  forward  as  a  candidate  for  Congress  be- 
fore the  Union  Convention.  The  names  submitted  to 
that  body  were  those  of  Caleb  T.  Fay,  R.  F.  Perkins, 
(since  deceased)  and  Cornelius  Cole,  since  U.  S.  Senator. 
On  the  first  ballot,  Mr.  Fay  received  the  highest  vote 
(101).  On  a  subsequent  ballot,  Messrs.  Perkins  and 
Cole  united  their  forces,  and  Mr.  Cole  was  nominated. 

Immediately  upon  leaving  the  office  of  Assessor,  Mr. 
Fay  was  elected  by  the  trustees  of  the  Union  Insurance 
Company  of  San  Francisco,  to  the  responsible  position  of 
President  of  that  wealthy  and  flourishing  institution.  He 
entered  at  once  upon  his  new  duties. 

We  now  approach  the  proudest  page,  perhaps,  in  Mr. 
Fay's  historj,  to  record  his  connection  with  the  Merchants' 
Exchange  Association  of  San  Francisco.  The  merchants 
of  San  Francisco  had,  up  to  the  time  of  the  erection  of 
the  Merchants  Exchange  building,  been  depived  of  the 
practical  commercial  benefits  arising  from  a  convenient, 
central,  local  rendezvous,  where  they  could  successfully 
inaugurate  a  regular  'change  hsour,  and  hold  daily  meet- 
ings for  business  and  social  conference;  where  accurate 
and  reliable  bulletin  market  reports  could  always  be 
found :  where  information  from  all  parts  of  the  world,  by 
means  of  newspapers,  ships,  and  the  electric  telegraph, 
would  be  promptly  disclosed.  Such  institutions  are 
deemed  indispensable  to  commercial  prosperity  in  other 
large  cities,  and  it  is  remarkable  that  San  Francisco  re- 
mained for  so  many  eventful  years  without  an  Exchange, 
owned  and  controlled  by  her  business  men. 

In  the  spring  of  1866,  while  he  was  yet  President  of 
the  Union  Insurance  Company,  Mr.  Fay  determined  to 


312  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

consult  with  enterprising  business  men  of  the  city,  with 
a  view  to  taking  the  initiatory  steps  towards  the  erection 
of  a  Merchants'  Exchange.  He  waited  upon  Mr.  Jona- 
than Hunt,  President  of  the  Pacific  Insurance  Company, 
who  became  his  earliest  coadjutor  in  the  work.  Messrs. 
Fay  and  Hunt  then  enlisted  Mr.  Wm.  C.  Ralston,  the 
eminent  banker,  in  the  enterprise,  who,  in  his  usual 
prompt  style  offered  to  furnish  temporarily  all  the  money 
needful  to  secure  the  purchase  of  sufficient  land.  Mr. 
Fay  called  a  meeting  of  prominent  merchants  and  capital- 
ists at  the  office  of  the  Union  Insurance  Company,  which 
was  well  attended,  and  resulted  in  a  determination  to 
push  the  work  to  completion.  Messrs.  Thomas  H.  Selbv, 
R.  G.  Sneath,  Lloyd  Tevis,  W.  C.  Talbot,  L.  Sachs,  Sam- 
uel Brannan,  J.  W.  Stow,  R.  B.  Swain,  and  many  other 
wealthy  men,  gave  their  money  and  influence  to  the  work. 
The  result  was  the  incorporation,  in  June,  1866,  of  the 
Merchants'  Exchange  Association,  with  a  capital  stock 
of  $250,000.  Subscriptions  to  the  amount  of  one  half 
of  this  entire  sum  were  obtained  by  Mr.  Fay  himself.  A 
valuable  lot  of  land,  beautifully  situated,  was  immediately 
purchased,  and  the  erection  of  the  present  elegant  build- 
ing of  the  Association  was  commenced.  This  structure 
stands  on  the  south  side  of  California  street,  and  extends 
from  Leidesdorff  street  to  within  a  few  feet  of  Montgom- 
ery street,  in  the  very  heart  of  the  commercial  centre.  Ic 
was  finished  in  1867,  and  this  brief  description  of  it  ap- 
peared in  Langley's  City  Direo^.ory  of  San  Francisco, 
shortly  after  its  completion.  "The  Nev/  Merchants'  Ex- 
change, corner  California  and  Leidesdorff  streets,  is  the 
largest  and  one  of  the  most  elegant  structures  in  the  city. 
The  front  on  California  street  consists  of  basement,  three 
stories  and  attic — surmounted  by  a  clock  tower.  The 
basement  is  constructed  of  solid  cut  granite,  which  rises 
about  six  feet  above  the  side-walk.  The  first  story  is  in 
the  pure  Doric  style,  the  second  in  Ionic,  and  the  third 
in  highly-ornamented  Corinthian.  The  attics  are  in  mod- 
ernized-mediaeval,  if  such  a  term  implies  the  adaptation 
of  old  styles  to  new  purposes.  The  whole  is  surmounted 
by  a  heavy  balustrade,  divided  by  colossal  Etruscan  vases. 


CALEB   T.    FAY.  313 

above  which  rises  the  lofty  clock  tower  which  has  four 
large  dials  that  afford  the  "time  o'day"  to  the  residents 
of  a  large  portion  of  the  city;  the  great  height  of  the  tow- 
er— one  hundred  and  twenty  feet  above  the  side-walk — 
making  it  a  conspicuous  object.  Each  of  the  stories  on 
this  point  recede  about  ten  feet,  forming  extensive  bal- 
conies, surrounded  with  balustrades,  and  vases,  which 
impart  to  the  building  a  peculiar  appearance  of  massive- 
ness  and  strength.  The  front  on  Leidesdorff  street  is  in 
the  same  style,  but  less  ornamental  and  without  recesses. 
All  the  ornamental  work  on  the  exterior  is  made  of  cast 
iron ;  the  whole  being  painted  a  pale  drab,  and  sprinkled 
with  Monterey  sand,  which  gives  the  building  the  ap- 
pearance of  being  made  of  stone.  The  interior  of  this 
magnificent  structure  has  been  fitted  up  to  correspond 
with  its  exterior.  The  total  cost  of  the  building,  without 
the  lot,  has  been  $190,000." 

The  cost  of  this  superb  edifice,  and  the  ground  it  oc- 
cupies, amounted  to  the  sum  of  $350,000.  It  is  truly  a 
noble  monument  to  the  liberality  and  enterprise  of  the 
men  who  erected  it,  and  an  enduring  evidence  of  the  prac- 
tical \visdom  of  Caleb  T,  Fay. 

In  the  summer  of  1868,  Mr.  Fay  resigned  his  place 
as  President  of  the  Union  Insurance  Company,  in  order 
to  accept  the  nomination  tendered  him  by  the  National 
Republican  organization  for  Governor  of  California. 
Henry  H.  Haight  had  already  received  the  Democratic 
nomination  for  that  ofl&ce,  and  Geo.  C.  Gorham  had  been 
appointed  by  a  Convention  called  in  the  interest  of  the 
Union  party.  But  said  Convention  was  organized  by  the 
admission  of  sixty-three  delegates  from  San  Francisco,  ap- 
pointed outside  of  the  Union  party  by  a  league  called 
Eight-Hour  Men ,  unknown  and  unrecognized  by  any  po- 
litical party.  The  Republicans  being  thus  practically  ig- 
nored and  excluded  from  the  Convention,  at  once  called 
another  State  Convention,  and  nominated  Mr.  Fay.  Al- 
though having  no  chance  for  an  election,  he  entered  the 
canvass  with  his  accustomed  zeal,  and  conducted  him- 
self throughout  with  the  dignity  becoming  his  position. 
In  this  triangular  contest,  which  was  perhaps  the  most  in- 


314  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

teresting,  exciting,  and  bitter  political  campaign  ever 
conducted  in  California,  the  Democratic  candidate  was 
elected.  The  purpose  of  this  volume  will  not  permit  a 
discussion  of  the  principles  of  the  parties,  or  the  merits  of 
the  candidates  then  before  the  people.  The  course  taken 
by  Mr.  Fay  was  the  plain  path  of  duty  which  his  judgment 
and  his  conscience  directed  him  to  pursue. 

In  his  letter  accepting  the  nomination  for  Governor, 
Mr.  Fay  used  this  language : 

^' Since  1848,  at  which  time  I  cast  my  first  Presidential 
vote  to  sustain  the  Free  Soil  candidates  of  that  campaign, 
I  have  been  identified,  and  have  worked  with  the  National 
Radical  party,  having  for  its  objects  the  freedom,  advance- 
ment and  elevation  of  the  masses  of  the  people.  I  cannot 
consent  that  the  Union  party,  with  which  1  have  acted  in 
this  State  since  its  formation,  shall  take  a  backward  step, 
as  is  manifest  in  the  adoption  of  its  cowardly  platform  of 
June  12th,  and  its  tame  submission  to  conspirators  against 
the  popular  will,  without  entering  my  protest  and  decla- 
ration, that  if  it  does  go  back  I  will  not  go  with  it.  I 
will  consent  to  belong  only  to  a  party  that  is  progressive. 
The  times  demand  that  we  should  pierce  the  veil  of  frothy 
stump-declamation,  and  look  at  the  political  situation  as 
it  is  in  our  midst:  but  principles  must  claim  our  attention, 
not  men ;  for  men  are  the  creatures  of  an  hour — to-day 
they  live,  perhaps  powerful,  proud,  boastful  and  defiant — 
to-morrow  they  are  dead  and  forgotten;  but  principles 
are  imperishable.  The  foundations  of  all  government 
should  be  laid  deep  and  solid,  upon  the  rock  of  impartial 
justice  to  the  governed.  It  is  the  business  of  political 
leaders  to  keep  burnished  and  bright  before  the  people,  by 
living  faith  and  practice,  all  the  essential  principles  of 
government;  and  when  the  leaders  of  a  Government  or 
party  fall  short  of  this  sacred  mission,  they  are  useless 
lumber,  or  parasites  upon  the  body  politic,  and  may  ex- 
pect the  people  to  repudiate  their  leadership.  Moiiarchs 
claim  a  divine  right  to  rule  over  people  by  virtue  of  su- 
perior wisdom  concentrated  in  themselves,  to  govern;  or 
in  other  words,  they  believe  that  minorities  should  rule. 
The  slaveholders  of  our  country  were  advocates  of  the 


CALEB   T.    FAY,  315 

same  principle,  and  endeavored  to  perpetuate  it  upon 
our  soil  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet.  To  put  down  and 
destroy  this  heresy  cost  half  a  million  lives,  and  three 
thousand  million  of  dollars  that  are  yet  to  be  earned  and 
wrung  from  the  sons  of  toil.  Republics  claim  the  right 
of  the  majority  to  rule.  They  believe  in  the  wisdom  and 
justice  of  numbers,  which  is  the  key  to  their  government 
arch.  Remove  that  key,  and  the  republican  fabric  reared 
by  our  fathers,  and  cemented  by  the  blood  of  our  broth- 
ers, falls,  a  chaotic  and  shapeless  mass  of  political  ruin; 
hence,  any  innovation  upon  the  vital  principles  in  our 
political  fabric,  from  whatever  source  it  may  come,  should 
be  looked  upon  as  treason  to  our  republican  faith,  and 
should  be  met  at  the  threshold  wherever  it  appears,  and 
destroyed,  whether  it  be  in  the  camp  of  armed  traitors, 
open  political  enemies,  or  disguised  in  the  habiliments  of 
political  friends.  The  government  of  the  majority  neces- 
sarily involves  the  enfranchisement  of  the  masses.  There 
are  three  ways  of  violating  this  republican  charter  of  lib- 
erty; one  is  by  armed  rebellion  of  the  minority,  another 
is  disfranchisement  by  law,  and  still  another  is  by  such 
low  cunning,  deceit,  fraud,  bribery  and  corruption  in  po- 
litical circles,  as  to  set  aside  the  manifest  will  of  the  peo- 
ple. The  latter  mode  of  disfranchisement  is  the  present 
working  condition  of  the  machinery  of  the  Union  party 
of  California ;  and  those  who  have  followed  it  faithfully 
in  time  past,  in  its  march  through  the  sea  of  blood, 
to  sustain  the  majority  principle,  are  now  commanded 
and  entreated  to  indorse  this  treachery  to  our  political 
faith,  and  by  so  doing  become  participants  in  this  high 
political  crime.  Others  may  do  it  if  they  will,  IwiE  not; 
for  I  hold  that  since  slavery  is  destroyed,  there  is  no  form 
of  usurpation  now  so  dangerous  to  American  liberty  as 
plottings  of  unscrupulous  demagogues  to  foist  themselves 
into  power  against  the  manifest  will  of  the  masses." 

In  a  speech  delivered  just  before  the  close  of  the  cam- 
paign, at  the  State  House  in  Sacramento,  Mr.  Fay  ad- 
dressed himself  to  the  questions  of  National  Taxation, 
Reconstruction,  Suffrage,  Internal  Improvement,  Corpora- 
tions, the  Union  and  the  Republican  parties,  and  other 


316  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

topics  of  absorbing  interest,  in  such  an  able  and  states- 
manlike manner  as  to  call  forth  the  universal  approbation 
of  the  true  men  of  the  Republican  organization,  and  to 
elicit  the  following  endorsement  from  the  principal  news- 
paper of  the  Capital,  the  Sacramento  Union,  a  journal  hav- 
ing, perhaps,  the  widest  circulation  of  any  published  on 
the  Pacific  Coast. 

'^  A  Speech  fit  for  a  Governor. — The  speech  of  Caleb 
T.  Fay,  delivered  in  the  city  on  Wednesday  evening,  and 
printed  in  yesterday's  Union^  is  one  fit  for  a  gentleman 
aspiring  to  the  G-overnorship  of  California,  to  make.  By 
means  of  the  daily  and  weekly  Union  it  will  reach  at  least 
twenty-five  thousand  readers,  to  each  and  all  of  whom 
we  commend  it  for  earnest  and  thoughtful  perusal.  It  is 
a  document  that  would  honor  the  highest  republican 
statesmanship,  and  is  filled  with  maxims  which  ought  to 
sink  deep  into  the  hearts  of  the  people.  A  straightfor- 
ward and  honest  man,  who  cares  nothing  for  office  merely 
for  its  own  sake,  but  who  at  the  same  time,  conscious  of 
the  manifold  ills  which  afflict  the  State,  cherishes  an  hon- 
orable ambition  to  be  placed  in  a  position  where  he  can 
greatly  assist  in  their  amelioration,  and  live  and  act  for 
the  good  of  his  fellow  men,  Mr.  Fay  resorts  to  none  of 
the  tricks  and  subterfuges  of  the  professed  politician,  but 
presents  his  views  on  public  matters  with  all  the  frank- 
ness of  a  private  citizen  and  all  the  unconcern  of  conse- 
quences which  might  be  expected  from  a  philosopher. 
He  sets  out  with  the  just  theory  that  public  men  in  this 
country  are  properly  the  servants  of  the  people,  to  light- 
en their  burdens  and  direct  them  in  the  way  of  govern- 
ment without  oppression  by  the  rich  or  peculation  on  the 
part  of  officials.  He  appeals,  as  he  can  so  well  afford  to 
appeal,  to  his  past  record  on  the  important  questions  of 
labor,  economy  in  administration,  retrenchment  in  ex- 
penditure, and  honesty  in  officials." 

In  the  last  presidential  election,  Mr.  Fay  gave  a  cheer- 
ful support  to  the  successful  candidate.  His  time  is  now 
mostly  devoted  to  the  development  of  a  valuable  mine  of 
iron  ore,  discovered  a  few  years  ago,  in  Sierra  County, 
and  located,  according  to  Professor  Richthofew  who  ex- 


CALEB    T.    FAY,  317 

amined  it,  ''  about  twelve  miles  E.  N.  E.  of  the  city  of 
Downieville,  and  a  few  miles  nortli  of  the  culminating  rocky 
summits  of  the  Sierra  Buttes."  A  careful  and  scientific 
examination  of  this  mine  has  established  the  fact,  (attest- 
ed by  no  less  an  authority  than  Professor  H.  Schrotter, 
of  Vienna)  that  the  ore  which  it  yields  contains  an  aver- 
age of  sixty  per  cent,  of  pure  iron,  and  is  equal  to  the 
best  Swedish  ores;  and  gives  the  further  assurance,  that 
California  is  not  only  rich  in  gold  and  copper,  but  also 
in  what  is  really  the  most  useful,  if  not  the  most  precious 
of  metals. 

Having  become  largely  interested  in  the  ownership 
of  these  valuable  deposits,  and  being  confident  that  they 
can  be  made  available  for  the  purpose  of  manufacturing 
iron,  Mr.  Fay  looks  forward  hopefully  to  the  time  when 
from  this  branch  of  metallurgy  will  spring  a  new  industry 
which  will  not  only  amply  reward  his  own  patient  efforts, 
but  augment,  in  a  wonderful  degree,  the  wealth  of  the 
State. 

Mr.  Fay's  residence  is  still  at  San  Francisco,  where  he 
expects  to  pass  the  remainder  of  his  life. 


-II?! 


WILLIAM  I.  FERGUSON 

By  the  Editoi^ 


THE  history  of  political  parties  in  California  is  illus- 
trated with  the  genius  of  brilliant  and  ambitious 
minds  from  every  section  of  the  American  Union:  and 
of  these  it  is  noteworthy  that  a  large  and  disproportion- 
ate number,  prior  to  their  advent  in  California,  exercised 
a  conspicuous  leadership  in  public  affairs  in  Illinois. 
Baker,  McDougall,  Ferguson,  Campbell,  Hoge,  Hardy, 
Pratt — these  are  but  a  few  of  the  ardent  spirits  sent 
forth  by  the  Prairie  State  to  the  shores  of  the  Pacific, 
endowed  with  the  charms  of  oratory,  strengthened  by 
enlightened  experience,  and  learned  in  the  science  of 
law. 

William  I.  Ferguson  was  born  May  9th,  1825,  at 
Monongahela  City,  Pennsylvania,  the  native  State  of  his 
father  and  mother.  His  grand  -  parents  came  to  the 
United  States  from  Ireland.  His  father,  Benjamin  F., 
was  a  carpenter  and  builder.  William  was  the  oldest  of 
six  children.  When  he  was  ten  years  of  age,  his  parents 
removed  to  Springfield,  Illinois,  where  his  father  died, 
and  where  his  mother,  sisters,  and  two  brothers,  now 
reside. 

William  received  a  common-school  education.  After 
leaving  school,  he  clerked  for  a  short  time  in  a  store; 
then,  having  determined  to  prepare  himself  for  the  bar, 
he  applied  himself  closely  for  some  years  to  the  study 


320  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   TEE   PACIFIC. 

of  law  in  the  offices  of  Judge  Logan,  Col.  E.  D.  Baker, 
and  other  prominent  lawyers  of  Springfield.  He  received 
his  license  to  practice  before  he  attained  his  majority, 
and  soon  obtained  a  good  business.  Politics,  as  well  as 
law,  had  a  charm  for  him.  When  he  was  a  very  young 
man,  he  became  noted  as  an  eloquent  and  forcible 
speaker.  He  had  been  raised  a  Whig,  but,  on  becoming 
a  voter,  espoused  the  Democratic  cause.  He  was  several 
times  elected  city  attorney  of  Springfield,  and  his  name 
was  placed  on  the  Democratic  electoral  ticket  in  the 
presidential  election  of  1848,  he  then  being  only  twenty- 
three  years  of  age.  In  1850  he  was  a  candidate  for  the 
State  Legislature,  and  ran  far  ahead  of  his  ticket;  but 
was  defeated,  there  being  at  that  time  a  very  large  Whig 
majority  in  his  district. 

The  editor  has  received  the  following  reminiscences 
of  Mr.  Ferguson,  from  Mr.  W.  H.  Herndon,  a  leading 
lawyer  of  Springfield,  formerly  a  law  partner  of  Presi- 
dent Lincoln.  Mr.  Herndon  wrote  his  narrative  hastily, 
intending  only  to  furnish  data  for  this  sketch,  without 
expecting  that  his  language  would  be  adopted  by  the 
editor : 

Spbingfield,  IU.,  March  20th,  1869. 
Oscar  T,  ^huck,  Esq., 

San  Francisco,  Cal. 

Dear  Sir: — I  knew  Hon.  William  I.  Ferguson  as  early  as  1836, 
when  he  was  going  to  school.  I  .sold  his  father  Gillies'  Greece  for 
William  to  read.  He  read  it  well  and  with  admiration,  and  was 
enthusiastic  over  its  contents.  He  was  fond  of  good  history.  About 
the  year  1835,  '6,  or  '1 ,  I  was  president  of  a  young  men's  debating 
society  in  Springfield,  Illinois  Ferguson  joined  it,  and  he  soon 
assumed  a  leadership  in  it.  He  was  a  number-one  talker  in  the 
society.  He  generally  studied  his  subject  well,  would  converse  with 
older  heads,  read  books  and  papers,  and  thus  became  well  informed 
on  the  subject  under  debate.  He  admired  conversation  more  than 
reading.  He  would  absorb  all  that  was  said;  would  assimilate  it, 
digest  and  use  it.  I  do  not  think  he  loved  mathematics  at  school; 
but  grammar  and  rhetoric  were  favorite  studies.  He  was  a  close 
reader  of  Byron,  Shakspeare,  and  Milton.  AVilliam  was  an  open- 
hearted,  spontaneous  young  man;  would  go  to  any  lengths  for  a 
friend,  even  when  a  mere  lad.  He  did  not  love  to  fight  with  boys; 
had  too  much  good-will  and  sense.  About  the  year  1837  or  1838, 
he  was  a  clerk  in  a  store  in  Springfield,  owned  by  Bell  «&  Speed, 
where  he  remained  about  one  year.     This  occupation  was  decidedly 


WILLIAM   I.    FERGUSON.  321 

distasteful  to  him;  his  active  brain  and  impulsive  nature  yearned  for 
nobler  employments.  His  father  then  put  him  to  learn  the  car- 
penter's trade,  but  the  boy  was  still  unsatisfied.  When  pushing  the 
jack-jjlane  at  his  trade,  he  embraced  every  leisure  moment  to  creep 
down  into  the  shavings  and  read  history  or  poetry.  About  this 
time,  his  friends  thought  he  must  die  with  the  consumption.  How- 
ever, by  keei^ingin  the  open  air,  and  taking  much  physical  exercise, 
he  got  well.  In  the  year  1842,  he  went  into  the  law  ofiice  of  Hon. 
y.  T.  Logan  of  Springfield;  he  received  his  license  in  1843.  He 
and  Hon.  David  Logan,  now  of  Oregon,  son  of  Hon.  S.  T.  Logan, 
read  law  at  the  same  time  and  place.  They  were  boys  of  much 
promise,  because  they  had  by  nature  large  minds,  and  were  studious, 
determined,  and  patient.  Ferguson,  upon  being  admitted,  went 
into  an  extensive  practice  at  once.  He  was  social  and  beloved.  He 
knew  how  to  attract  and  tie  men  to  him.  He  was  more  of  a  thinker 
than  a  reader;  was  a  great  absorber  of  what  was  said  in  conversa- 
tion. He  soon  came  to  be  the  first  ciiminal  lavvycr  at  the  Sangamon 
bar,  among  such  men  as  Lincoln,  Logan,  Baker,  McDougal,  Bledsoe, 
Stuart,  and  others.  I  have  watched  the  young  man  in  a  hard  case 
with  admii-ation:  he  was  calm  and  self-possessed,  knowing  his  case 
thoroughly.  His  leading  characteristic,  in  mind,  was  his  quick,  ex- 
cellent judgment.  His  reason  vv'as  no  better  than  that  of  a  thousand 
other  men.  His  intuitive  judgments  were  admii'able,  keen,  coiTect, 
and  quick  as  lightning.  He  told  vrhat  the  law  was  when  heaiing  it 
discussed,  even  before  it  was  decided  by  the  Court.  He  caught 
liints  how  to  manage  his  case  by  closely  watching  the  ideas  of  op- 
posing attorneys.  Ferguson  intuitively  knew  that  the  op])osite  at- 
torney's side  was  antagonistic  to  his.  Hence  he  never  vras  at  a  loss 
to  know  how  to  manage  a  case,  for  a  defendant  especially. 

Mr.  Ferguson  was  chosen  in  this  city  on  the  Fourth  of  July,  1840, 
to  be  the  orator  of  the  day,  over  such  men  as  Lincoln,  Logan,  and 
others.  His  oration  was  truly  eloquent:  it  was  finely,  grandly  elo- 
quent. He  gained  great  honor  on.  that  occasion.  I  forgot  to  say 
that  one  of  William's  habits  was  to  read  aloud,  and  walk  the  room, 
when  so  doing,  backwards  and  forwards :  he  loved  to  read  orations — 
Greek,  Eoman,  Englisli,  and  American.  He  was  when  about  say 
from  sixteen  to  twenty-two,  always  repeating  them:  he  vrould  go 
into  the  deep  woods  and  there  speak  to  a  tree,  or  to  me  as  well  as 
others  of  his  friends.  In  politics  he  was  raised  a  Whig:  he  turned 
Democrat  about  1844. 

On  one  occasion  he  and  I  were  going  to  court  in  Christian  county. 
Hon.  David  Davis  was  judge  of  what  may  be  called  the  Sangamon 
District  or  Cii'cuit.  On  the  road  we  heard  that  Judge  Davds  was  too 
ill  to  attend  Court.  "Hush,"  said  young  Ferguson,  "and  we'll 
have  some  fun :  we'll  tell  the  people  that  we  are  authorized  to  hold 
Court  for  Judge  Davis."  So  we  rode  to  the  count}^  seat,  and  after 
breakfast  in  the  morning  Ferguson  had  Court  open,  as  aiipeared  to 
the  crowd,  in  a  legitimate  way.  The  Sheriff  knew  no  better,  nor 
did  the  clerk,  nor  the  lawyers.  I  kept  still — said  nothing.  One 
lawyer  made  a  motion,  and  during  the  time  it  was  being  argued, 

21 


322  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

some  one  behaved  rather  badly.    Young  Ferguson  said :  * '  Mr.  Clerk, 

fine  Mr. one  dollar  for  contempt  of  Court,  in  making  too 

much  noise  and  for  keeping  his  hat  on  in  the  court-room."  The 
man  walked  ujd;  paid  his  fine  with  some  grumbling.  Two  or  three 
fines  in  addition  were  thus  imposed.  Probably  four  or  five  dollars 
were  collected  in  this  way.  In  about  one  or  two  hours,  Ferguson 
rose  up  in  the  chair  and  said:  "Mr.  Clerk,  Court's  adjourned. 
Let's  go  and  have  a  general  froKc  with  the  fine-money— a  big,  old- 
fashioned  spree."  Then  it  was  first  discovered  that  it  was  a  sham 
court.  The  people  were  wild  in  their  fun,  and  those  that  paid  the 
fines  enjoyed  the  joke  more  than  all  others. 

Yours  truly, 

W.  H.  Hekndon. 

Mr.  Ferguson  left  Illinois  on  the  26tli  day  of  Sep- 
tember^ 1852,  for  Texas.  He  resided  in  Dallas  county  in 
the  latter  State,  until  the  following  spring,  and  then 
started  overland  for  California,  where  he  arrived  in  the 
summer  of  1853.  After  residing  for  a  few  months  at 
Marysville,  he  located  permanently  at  Sacramento,  and 
entered  upon  the  practice  of  his  profession.  Possessed 
of  a  fine  knowledge  of  law,  of  affable  manners,  and  a  very 
generous  and  kind  disposition,  his  popularity  soon  became 
as  great  as  his  ambition,  (which  was  unlimited)  and  pro- 
cured him  as-  much  business  as  he  could  possibly  attend 
to.  He  loved,  but  was  not  wedded  to,  his  profession, 
although  he  distinguished  himself  as  a  criminal  lawyer. 
He  sought  to  make  it  a  stepping-stone  to  political  prefer- 
ment; and  cherished  an  honorable  zeal  to  shine  in  the 
councils  of  the  State  and  nation.  He  had  an  insatiable 
thirst  for  fame.  He  cared  but  little  for  money.  The 
fluctuations  in  real  estate,  and  the  rise  and  fall  of  stocks, 
never  cost  him  a  sigh  or  gave  him  any  concern.  The 
records  of  the  County  Recorder  of  Sacramento  county 
do  not  once  reveal  his  name  as  the  purchaser  or  vendor 
of  a  single  inch  of  ground.  He  lived  and  moved  in  the 
midst  of  a  restless  throng,  crazed  by  the  eager  desire  for 
gain,  but  himself  callous  to  the  allurements  of  mammon. 
The  example  of  indifference  to  the  acquisition  of  wealth 
in  an  age  of  speculators  and  in  a  community  of  fortune- 
hunters,  was  novel  and  striking. 

In  1855,  Ferguson  was  nominated  by  the  Native 
American  or  Know-Nothing  party  for  State  senator.     His 


WILLIAM!   I.    FERGUSON.  323 

Democratic  competitor  was  his  first  law-partner  in  Sacra- 
mento, ^Ym.  S.  Long.  At  the  election,  Ferguson  received 
3,437  votes  to  2,592  cast  for  Long. 

On  entering  the  Senate,  he  w^as  appointed  chairman 
of  the  Judiciary  Committee,  and  at  once  became  a 
leading  member  of  that  body.  The  Legislature  was 
called  upon  during  that  session  to  elect  a  United  States 
senator.  In  the  lower  branch,  the  new  party  had  a  large 
preponderance,  while  in  the  Senate  their  majority  was 
only  one.  Hon.  Wilson  Flint,  one  of  the  hold-over  San 
Francisco  senators,  was  kno^vn  to  be  in  sympathy  with  the 
Know-N^othings  or  Native  Americans,  and  in  company 
with  Henry  S.  Foote,  had  stumped  the  State  in  1850  for 
that  party,  and  the  votes  of  that  party  had  been  cast  in  a 
body  for  him,  and  aided  his  election  to  the  State  Senate. 
Therefore,  his  vote  was  relied  upon  for  the  American 
nominee  for  United  States  senator.  It  was  the  pur- 
pose of  the  Know-Nothing  senators  to  go  into  joint  con- 
vention, without  first  holding  a  caucus ;  but,  as  Mr.  Flint 
declared  he  would  not  vote  for  the  choice  of  the  majority 
unless  that  choice  were  indicated  by  a  caucus,  the  original 
intention  was  changed  and  a  caucus  was  held.  In  a  speech 
delivered  in  the  Senate,  January  15th,  1856,  and  which 
was  reported  in  the  Sacramento  JJnion^  Mr.  Flint,  in 
explaining  his  connection  with  the  Native  American  party, 
used  these  words:  ''I  assure  the  party  to  which  I  hold 
allegiance,  that  I  am  prepared  at  any  time  to  abide  the 
result  of  a  caucus." 

At  that  time,  it  will  be  remembered,  it  required  a 
majority  of  both  branches  of  the  Legislature  to  bring  on 
the  election  of  a  United  States  senator.  Seeing  how 
evenly  balanced  the  two  parties  were  in  the  Senate,  David 
C.  Broderick  was  making  herculean  exertions  to  have  the 
election  postponed  until  the  next  session  of  the  Legislature, 
when  he  hoped  to  secure  the  prize  himself.  The  caucus 
of  the  dominant  party  had  many  sittings,  in  the  endeavor 
to  agree  upon  a  candidate.  Mr.  Ferguson  himself  received 
a  large  vote  for  the  high  position.  The  principal  can- 
didate, however,  was  Hon.  Henry  S.  Foote,  and  upon  him 
the  caucus  at  last  combined.     That  gentleman  would  have 


324  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE    PACTFIC. 

been  chosen,  in  a  day  or  two  thereafter,  as  the  represent- 
ative of  the  State  of  California  in  the  United  States 
Senate,  but  for  the  unexpected  defection  of  Willson  Flint, 
who  refused,  in  the  most  stubborn  and  determined  man- 
ner, to  support  the  caucus  nominee.  Ferguson  warmly 
endorsed  the  nomination,  and  was  unable  to  restrain  the 
impetuosity  of  his  feelings  against  Flint.  As  he  was 
master  of  satire  and  invective,  he  astounded  the  Senate, 
and  even  those  who  knew  him  best,  by  the  withering 
anathemas  which  he  hurled  at  the  head  of  "  the  recreant." 
But  the  Senate  refused,  by  a  majority  of  one,  to  go  into 
joint  convention  with  the  Assembly,  and  Broclerick's 
star  again  ascended  the  political  heavens. 

In  the  fall  of  1856,  in  the  middle  of  his  senatorial 
term,  Ferguson  openly  renounced  the  Know-Nothing 
Order,  and  was  welcomed  back,  with  many  joyous  dem- 
onstrations, into  tho  Democratic  ranks.  A  committee  of 
prominent  Know-Nothings  waited  upon  him  and  demanded 
his'*resignation.  He  agreed  that,  if  his  vote,  should  be 
necessary  to  decide  the  choice  of  a  United  States  senator 
at  the  next  session  of  the  Legislature,  he  would  resign, 
in  time  for  the  people  of  Sacramento  county  to  elect  his 
successor  —  intending  in  that  event  to  go  before  the 
public  as  a  candidate  for  reelection ;  but  as  that  exigency 
4.id  not  arise,  he  served  out  his  term.  At  the  next  ses- 
sion both  branches  of  the  Legislature  had  Democratic 
maiorities,  and  early  in  the  session,  Broderick  was  elected 
to  the  United  States  Senate,  Ferguson  voting  for  him. 

In  1857,  Ferguson  was  nominated  by  the  Democracy 
as  his  successor  in  the  Senate,  and  was  reelected.  The 
contest  was  bitter  and  hotly  contested.  The  vote  stood: 
Ferguson,  Democratic,  2,746;  Brewster,  American,  2,502; 
Nixon,  Republican,  934. 

The  session  commenced  on  the  first  Monday  in  Janu- 
ary, 3  858.  About  two  months  before  the  Legislature 
adjourned,  occurred  the  memorable  rupture  between 
Douglas  and  Buchanan,  and.  Ferguson  promptly  announced 
his  sympathy  with  the  former.  Towards  the  close  of  the 
session,  he  delivered  an  elaborate  speech  on  ^'  Squatter 
Sovereignty,"  which  was  an  impassioned  vindication  of 


WILLIAM   I.    FERGUSON.  325 

the  views  of  the  Illinois  statesman,  and  replete  with 
energetic  and  eloquent  censure  of  the  administration  of 
James  Buchanan.  This  speech  was,  perhaps,  the  most 
logical,  finished,  and  effective  of  all  his  forensic  efforts. 

In  August,  1858,  Ferguson  made  a  visit  to  San  Fran- 
cisco, and  there  became  involved  in  a  personal  dispute 
v/ith  Hon.  George  Pen  Johnston,  which  resulted  in  a 
duel  being  fought  between  them  at  Angel  Island,  in  San 
Francisco  Bay,  on  the  21st  day  of  that  month — the 
weapons  being  pistols,  and  Ferguson  being  the  challenged 
party.  At  the  fourth  fire,  the  latter  received  his  ad- 
versary's ball  in  his  right  thigh,  and  was  carried  from  the 
field — Johnston  being  slightly  wounded  in  the  left  wrist. 
When  his  phj^sicians  examined  Ferguson's  wound  soon 
after  its  infliction,  they  informed  him  of  its  serious  nature, 
and  notified  him  that,  unless  the  leg  were  amputated,  the 
chances  were  a  thousand  to  one  against  his  recovery.  He 
replied  that  he  would  not  lose  his  leg  for  all  California, 
and  that  he  would  take  the  solitary  chance.  The  surgeons, 
therefore,  rendered  him  such  assistance  as  they  could  give, 
and  did  not  resort  to  amputation  until  September  14th, 
when  Ferguson's  condition  made  a  further  and  minute 
examination  necessary;  whereupon,  it  became  evident 
that  amputation  furnished  the  only  hope  for  life.  The 
patient  at  last  yielded  to  the  advice  of  his  friends.  He 
stated  to  those  in  attendance  that  he  did  not  expect  to 
survive,  and  requested  that  if  the  people  of  Sacramento 
asked  for  his  body,  it  should  be  given  to  them,  that  he 
might  be  ''  buried  in  the  county  which  had  honored  him 
with  a  seat  in  the  Senate." 

At  about  half-past  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon, 
Doctors  Angle,  Sawyer,  Rowell,  Coit,  and  Gray,  after  ad- 
ministering chloroform,  commenced  the  operation  of 
amputating  the  limb.  This  was  performed  in  a  short 
time ;  but  his  long  and  painful  confinement  had  enfeebled 
him  to  the  last  degree,  and  he  could  stand  no  more. 
Before  the  operation  was  complete,  his  spirit  was  disen- 
thralled from  its  shattered  earthly  tenement,  and  gone 
(the  writer,  who  loved  him,  devoutly  trusts)  to  a  sinless 
world. 


326  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC 

It  was  then  seen  how  tenderly  he  was  beloved  by  the 
people  of  Sacramento.  Only  a  day  before  his  decease, 
the  telegraph  had  announced  that  he  was  better,  and 
the  intelligence  of  his  death  spread  a  deep  gloom  over 
the  capital.  A  large  delegation  of  Sacramentans  met 
the  party  in  charge  of  the  remains  at  Benicia,  and 
escorted  them  to  Sacramento,  where  the  body  was  lain 
in  state  in  the  Senate  chamber  of  the  capitol  building 
throughout  the  following  day.  Thousands  of  the  citizens 
of  Sacramento  county  visited  the  State  House,  to  behold 
for  the  last  time  the  noble  brow  and  form  of  him  whose 
nervous  eloquence  had  so  often,  in  that  very  building, 
delighted  and  entranced  them. 

On  the  16th  day  of  September,  after  an  impressive 
discourse  by  Rev.  J.  A.  Benton,  and  a  eulogy  by  Col.  E. 
D.  Baker,  a  very  large  concourse  followed  the  remains 
to  the  grave.  At  the  time  of  his  death,  he  had  one 
year  more  to  serve  as  a  State  senator,  and  was  a  promi- 
nent aspirant  for  congressional  honors. 

The  writer,  for  good  cause,  will  not  continue  this 
sketch  further.  When  Ferguson  felt  that  he  must  soon 
die,  he  said  to  those  who  watched  by  his  bedside:  "My 
friend  Baker  has  known  me  best  in  life :  ask  him,  if  he 
will,  to  speak  of  me  when  I  am  dead."  He  could  not 
have  entrusted  his  memory  to  the  keeping  of  a  better 
friend  than  the  eloquent  old  man  whose  voice  always  fell 
upon  enraj^tured  ears.  Col.  Baker  fulfilled  the  sad  trust 
committed  to  him,  and  spoke  in  pathetic  terms  of  the 
virtues,  talents,  frailties,  and  ambition  of  the  promising 
young  man  whom  he  had  known  since  his  early  boyhood. 
The  writer,  therefore,  drops  his  pen,  and  hastens  to  refer 
the  reader  to  Col.  Baker's  Eulogy,  which  immediately 
ifollows  this  sketch,  and  which  in  turn  is  followed  by  Mr. 
Benton's  Discourse. 


WILLIAM   I.    FERGUSON.  327 

EEIMAUKS  ON  THE  DEATH  OF  WM.  I.  FERGUSON, 

Delivered  in  the  Assembly  Chamber,  Sacramento,  Cal.,  September  16th,  1858. 

BY  COL.  E.  D.  BAKER. 

The  intense  interest  which  is  apparent  in  this  crowded  auditory 
too  well  evinces  the  mournful  character  of  the  ceremony  we  are 
about  to  perfoi-m.  Wherever  death  may  invade  the  precincts  of 
life,  whether  in  the  loftiest  or  lowliest  home,  there  is  a  tear  for  all 
who  fall;  there  is  a  mourner  for  even  the  meanest  and  the  most 
humble;  but  when  beyond  the  deep  impression  which  the  change 
from  life  to  death  produces  in  all  good  minds — when  beyond  this  we 
know  that  an  eminent  citizen  is  stricken  down  in  the  full  vigor  of 
his  manhood  and  in  the  pride  of  his  intellectual  power,  the  impres- 
sion is  deeplj'  mournfid.  And  when  to  this  we  add  that  those  who 
loved  him  in  life,  vrhose  servant  and  representative  he  was,  have 
gathered  around  his  bier  to-day  to  accompany  him  to  his  last  resting 
place  on  earth,  the  impression  is  not  merely  mournful,  but  painful. 
And  when  we  add  to  this  that  the  man  we  mourn  died  by  the  hand 
of  violence — suddenly- — in  a  peaceful  land,  away  from  his  own 
friends,  the  joainful  impression  becomes  an  overwhelming  soitow. 

At  the  personal  request  of  our  departed  friend,  it  has  been  assigned 
to  me  to  say  a  fev/  Vv^ords  upon  this  occasion. 

I  have  perhaps  known  him  longer  than  anybody  here.  I  have 
known  him,  more  particularly  in  his  early  youth,  perhaps  better 
than  any  one  here  assembled.  I  have  watched  the  bud,  the  blovv, 
the  fruit,  and  lastly  the  untimely  decay;  and  while  I  desii-e  to  speak 
of  him  as  he  himself  would  wish  to  be  spoken  of;  while  I  do  not 
mean  that  jiersonal  friendship  shall  warp  my  judgment  or  lead  me 
to  say  as  his  friend  any  thing  unduly  in  his  praise,  so  also,  on  the 
other  hand,  shall  I  say  nothing  against  him  or  others  that  is  unjust 
or  unkind. 

The  gentleman  whose  remains  you  are  about  to  consign  to  his 
last  resting  place  until  the  trump  of  the  Archangel  shall  sound ,  was 
a  native  of  the  State  of  Pennsylvania.  I  knew  his  father  well;  a 
respectable,  worthy,  honest  man:  a  mechanic  by  pursuit,  intelligent, 
relf -reliant,  and  in  everj-  respect  honorable. 

The  young  man  was  ambitious  from  his  boyhood.  He  sought 
the  profession  of  the  law,  not  merely  for  itself,  but  as  an  opening 
that  would  lead  to  what  he  considered  were  higher  and  more  noble 
jDOsitions. 

He  was  fitted  for  the  study  of  law  by  nature.  He  was  then  what 
you  knew  him  but  lately — bold,  self-reliant,  earnest,  brilliant,  elo- 
quent, a  good  judge  of  human  nature,  kind,  generous,  making 
friends  everywhere,  placable  in  his  resentments,  easily  appeased, 
and  a  true  friend.  He  read  law  not  only  with  me,  but  also  with  far 
more  able  men,  and  he  formed  his  judgment  of  public  affairs  while 
honored  with  the  friendship  of  Douglas,  his  opponent  Lincoln,  John 


B28  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

J.  Hardin,  who  won  a  deathless  name  at  Bnena  Vista,  Judge  Logan, 
and  many  others  who  are  the  pride  and  boast  of  the  Mississippi 
Valley.  He  was  early  distinguished  in  his  own  State.  He  was  very 
young,  and  he  had  those  contests  among  his  own  friends  which  are 
peculiar  to  politics;  and  there  had  the  reverses  and  crosses  v»ithont 
which  no  man  is  worth  much.  The  success  v/hich  he  achieved  here 
had  its  foundation  laid  in  defeat,  and  I  think  I  may  say  that  most 
of  Avhat  he  knew  as  a  politician  he  had  learned  in  the  school  of 
adversity — 

"That  stern  teacher  of  the  human  breast." 

It  is  not  good  for  a  man  to  be  always  successful,  either  in  private 
or  public  life,  No  man's  character  can  be  formed  without  trial  and 
suffering,  and  our  departed  friend  showed  b}^  his  course  of  conduct 
that  he  could  cndiire  temporary  defeat,  confident  of  the  ultimate 
success  of  the  right — j^erhaps  not  the  less  confident  of  his  power  to 
achieve  success.  Ho  was  a  successful  candidate  upon  the  Demo- 
cratic ticket  for  presidential  elector  in  1848.  He  w^as  as  renow^ned 
in  his  own  State,  as  a  debater,  as  he  wacj  here;  he  had  (and  that  is 
saying  a  great  deal)  as  many  friends  there  as  he  had  here;  he 
deserved  them  there,  as  he  deserved  them  here,  by  his  fidelity  to  his 
friends,  high  personal  qualities,  courage,  intellect,  brilliancy — by 
those  qualities  which  rendered  him  so  dear  to  many  of  you  now 
before  me. 

He  came  here,  and  what  he  wiig"  here  you  know  better  than  I. 
You  knevv^  him  v/ell,  for  he  served  you.  You  knew  him  well,  for  he 
ever  strove  for  your  approbation,  and  loved  you  living,  and  loved  you 
dying.  He  had  a  great  many  qualities  that  make  a  successful  poli- 
tician, not  merely  in  the  personal  sense  of  the  word,  but  in  a  higher 
sense,  the  achievement  of  great  deeds,  and  the  advancement  of  great 
principles. 

These  halls  have  been  the  witnesses  of  many  of  his  triumphs. 
As  was  well  remarked  by  a  contemporary  newspaper,  he  hardly  ever 
undertook  that  which,  when  he  set  himself  earnestly  to  work,  he 
did  not  accomplish.  He  had  the  determination  to  succeed — that 
knowledge  of  mankind — that  control  over  other  men's  minds — that 
kindly  manner,  those  generous  impulses  for  all — that  love  for 
humanity — those  qu-alities  of  mind  which,  if  they  called  forth  grave 
defects,  also  called  forth  gTeat  virtues.  And  these  are  in  most  of 
the  departments  of  life  the  great  elements  of  success.  Mere  intel- 
lect, except  in  the  closet,  does  but  little :  the  qualities  of  mind,  of 
mere  abstract  vdsdom,  which  distinguished  a  Newton  or  a  LaPlace, 
would  do  but  little  at  Vv'ashington.  It  is  the  same  both  in  private 
and  public  life.  A  knowledge  of  the  human  heart;  a  readiness  of 
resources;  kindness  of  heart;  fidelity  in  friendship — will  effect  more 
than  mere  abstract  wisdom,  and  must  be  combined  with  it  in  order 
to  render  that  wisdom  of  avail.  These,  and  all  these,  our  friend 
had. 

You  know  how  well  he  served  you;  and  those  who  knew  him 
best,  knew  how  ardently  he  desired  your  approbation,  how  earnestly" 
he  strove  to  win  it. 


WILLIAM   I.    FERGUSON.  329 

There  is  more  than  one  thing  in  his  legislative  career  which 
deserves  notice,  and  not  the  least  is  the  manner  of  his  death.  Pie 
died  poor — not  poor  in  the  common  sense  of  the  term,  but  poor  as 
was  Aristides  vv-hen  he  was  buried  at  the  expense  of  the  citizens 
of  Athens.  Amongst  all  his  papers,  there  is  not  found  the  trace  of 
a  speculation.  He  had  no  property — no  resources;  hh  poverty,  if 
remarkable,  was  honorable.  In  a  land  where  conniption  is  said  to 
be  rife,  the  more  especially  in  legislative  bodies,  and  which,  w^hether 
the  charge  is  true  or  false,  is  proverbially  liable  to  corrupting  influ- 
ences, it  seems  impossible  that  he  used  the  vast  power  he  po: :s9£sed 
for  aught  excejDt  the  public  interest  and  welfare.  And  this  alone 
would  be  a  proud  epitaph  to  record  upon  his  tombstone.  Ho  vras  a 
man  of  undoubted  courage,  as  his  death  proved.  I  am  not  here  to 
speak  of  its  manner.  I  am  not  here  to  discuss  the  subject  of  duel- 
ing. If  I  were,  it  would  be  to  utter  my  unqualified  condemnation 
of  the  code  which  offers  to  personal  vindictiveness  a  life  due  only 
to  a  country,  a  family,  and  to  God.  If  I  were,  under  any  circum- 
stances, an  advocate  for  a  duel,  it  should  be  at  least  a  fau',  equal, 
and  honorable  duel.  If,  as  was  said  by  an  eloquent  advocate  in  its 
favor,  "  it  was  the  light  of  past  ages  which  shed  its  radiance  upon 
the  hill-tops  of  civilization,  although  its  light  might  be  lost  in  the 
dark  shade  of  the  yalle^^s  below;"  if  even  I  held  this  view,  I  should 
still  maintain  that  a  duel  should  be  fair  and  equal;  that  skill  should 
not  be  matched  against  ignorance,  practical  training  against  its  ab- 
sence. And  while  I  am  in  no  sense  to  be  understood  as  expressing 
an  opinion  as  to  the  late  duel,  knowing  nothing  of  the  matter  my- 
self, yet  I  do  say  that  no  duel  should  stand  the  test  of  public  opinion, 
independent  of  the  law,  except  the  great  element  of  equality  is  there. 
In  the  pursuits  of  common  life,  no  one  not  trained  to  a  profession 
is  supposed  to  be  a  match  for  a  professional  man  in  the  duties  of 
his  profession.  I  am  no  match  for  a  physician  in  any  matters  con- 
nected with  his  pursuits,  nor  would  the  physician  be  a  match  for  me 
in  a  legal  argiunent.  The  soldier  is  no  fair  match  for  the  civilian, 
when  the  latter  has  not  been  trained  to  the  use  of  anns;  nor,  al- 
though his  courage  is  equal,  and  he  may  have  a  profound  conviction 
that  he  is  right,  will,  therefore,  the  contest  be  rendered  equal  and 
just.  I  rejDcat  that  I  do  not  make  these  remarks  intending  thereby 
to  reflect  upon  the  character  of  the  late  duel.  Personally,  I  know 
nothing  more  than  what  I  and  you  all  have  heard.  Whether  it  was 
fair  or  unfair,  it  is  not  my  province  to  inquire.  I  am  denouncing 
the  system  itself,  for  it  loses  annually  hundreds  of  valuable  lives, 
and  in  the  present  state  of  civilization,  it  does  no  good,  profits 
nothing,  arrests  no  evil,  but  impels  a  thousand  e^ils;  but  above  all, 
do  I  protest  against  any  contests  of  this  nature  where,  in  skill, 
knowledge  of  weapons,  or  from  any  cause,  the  parties  are  not  equals 
in  all  the  conditions  of  that  stern  debate.  The  friend  whose  loss 
we  deplore  was  undoubtedly  a  man  of  courage.  Whatever  may  be 
said  with  respect  to  the  code  of  dueling — whatever  may  be  said  as 
to  his  motives — his  conduct  on  the  field  was  in  all  respects  what  his 
friends  expected.      He  stood  four  fires,  at  a  distance  of  scarcely 


330  REPEESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

twenty  feet,  witH  a  conviction  that  there  was  a  strong  determination 
to  take  his  life — that  the. matter  should  be  carried  to  an  extremity — 
and  that,  too,  when,  until  the  day  before,  he  had  never  fired  a  pistol 
off  in  his  life.  But  courage  is  shown  not  merely  in  action,  but  in 
endurance.  A  woman  may  show  the  higher  quality  of  courage  in 
many  instances  where  many  men  would  fail.  A  brave  man — a  really 
brave  man — shows  his  courage  no  less  in  endurance  than  in  action. 
It  is  a  higher,  a  greater  quality  to  suffer  than  to  do;  and  in  this 
respect  our  friend  was  no  way  defective.  He  bore  a  long  and  pain- 
ful confinement — he  bore  a  severe  operation — he  saw  his  hold  upon 
life  unclasping  day  by  day,  hour  by  hour;  and  amidst  it  all,  neither 
his  resolution  nor  his  cheerfulness,  faltered  for  an  instant.  When 
he  lay  helpless,  looking  back  uj)on  the  errors  (and  who  has  not 
errors?)  of  his  life,  he  seemed  to  recall  them  for  lessons  of  instruc- 
tion and  warning  for  the  future;  and  when  he  knew  he  must  die, 
he  arrayed  himself  for  the  last  contest,  to  die  as  became  a  man, 
amid  all  sweet  and  pious  and  holy  recollections.  He  died  with  no 
vindictive  passion  in  his  heart.  He  died  with  words  of  affection  upon 
his  lips.  He  died  with  the  thoughts  of  his  mother  present  to  his 
soul.  He  left  this  world  with  the  thoughts  of  home  and  mother. 
He  left  with  words  of  forgiveness  and  kindness.  His  last  act  of 
consciousness  was  an  act  of  prayer. 

Oh!  Affection,  Forgiveness,  Faith!  ye  are  mighty  spirits.  Ye 
are  powerful  angels.  And  the  soul  that  in  its  dying  moments  trusts 
to  these,  cannot  be  far  from  the  gates  of  heaven,  whatever  the  past 
life  may  have  been.  However  passion  or  excitement  maj^  have  led 
a  soul  astray,  if  at  the  last  and  final  hour  it  returns  to  the  lessons 
of  a  mother's  love,  of  a  father's  care-^if  it  learns  the  great  lesson 
of  forgiveness  to  its  enemies — if  at  the  last  moment  it  can  utter  these 
words:  "Father  of  life  and  light  and  love!" — these  shall  be  winged 
angels — troops  of  blessed  spirits — that  will  bear  the  fainting,  wounded 
soul  to  the  blessed  abodes,  and  for  ever  guard  it  against  despair. 
Oh,  my  friends!  those  mighty  gates  built  by  the  Almighty  to  guard 
the  entrance  to  the  unseen  world,  will  not  open  at  the  battle-axe  of 
the  conqueror;  they  will  not  roll  back  if  all  the  artillery  of  earth 
were  to  thunder  forth  a  demand,  which,  indeed,  would  be  lost  in 
the  infinite  regions  of  eternal  space!  but  they  will  open  with 
thoughts  of  affection,  with  forgiveness  of  injuries,  and  with  prayer. 

But  I  am  not  here  to  speak  of  the  virtues  of  the  departed  alone. 
He  had  his  defects;  they  were  great;  they  were  marked;  but  they 
w^ere  incident  to  his  career  and  his  character.  He  was,  by  nature 
and  habit,  a  j)olitician;  and  of  all  callings,  that  of  a  politician  is  the 
most  illusive  and  unsatisfactory :  it  kindles  the  mind  in  a  state  of 
constant  excitement:  it  is  a  constant  struggle,  which  is  frequently 
injurious  in  its  effects;  and  our  friend,  with  all  his  fine  qualities, 
was  no  exception  to  the  rule.  Let  him  that  is  without  sin  cast  the 
first  stone.  Of  how  many  can  we  say  that  no  greater  defect  can  be 
recorded?  Of  him  who  is  dead,  what  worse  can  be  said?  He  was 
honorable,  honest,  loving,  generous,  placable;  and  if  amid  his  virtues, 
there  were  some  defects,  they  are  but  to  be  mentioned  to  be  forgiven 


WILLIAM   I.    FERGUSON.  331 

and  forgotten.  Fellow-citizens,  the  words  I  utter  I  should  not  deem 
complete  if  I  did  not,  before  I  close,  utter  a  word  of  warning.  The  . 
most  powerful  intellect,  the  most  amiable  qualities,  may  be  shaded 
by  a  love  for  excitement  and  the  evils  which  the  life  of  a  politician 
is  but  too  apt  to  engender.  What  Ferguson  was,  we  know.  What 
he  might  have  been,  if  he  had  conquered  himself,  who  can  tell? 
The  inspired  book  says  that  ' '  he  that  ruleth  his  own  spirit  is  greater 
than  him  that  taketh  a  city,"  and  if  our  departed  friend  could  have 
conquered  himself,  who  could  have  stayed  the  resistless  course  of 
his  bright  intellect?  It  should  be  a  warning  to  us  all,  grey  heads 
as  well  as  to  young  men.  All  should  remember  that  the  i^ursuit  of 
politics  is  delusive  and  full  of  temptation.  No  man  should  forget 
the  duty  he  owes  to  his  country,  but  all  should  remember  that  they 
owe  a  duty  to  themselves.  When  men — I  refer  now  more  j^articu- 
larly  to  young  men — see  a  great  statesman  stand  forth  in  the  midst 
of  a  listening  Senate,  and  mark  the  stamp  which  he  makes  upon  the 
public  mind  and  upon  the  i^olicy  of  the  country  by  the  force  of  his 
intellectual  vigor,  they  are  apt  to  forget  the  labors  by  which  that 
proud  position  has  been  achieved — to  forget  how  many  have  sought 
to  attain  such  a  lofty  position  and  have  failed;  and  to  forget  that  he 
who  is  now  filling  their  minds  with  admiration,  may  be  on  the  eve 
of  a  sudden  fall !  Politics  should  not  be  the  pursuit,  I  mean  the 
only  pursuit,  of  any  man.  Representative  honors,  official  station, 
should  only  be  the  occasional  reward,  or  the  occasional  sacrifice; 
and  if,  forgetting  this  rule,  young  men  attempt  to  make  politics  theu' 
only  hope,  with  the  probability  that  in  many  cases  they  will  fail,  and 
that  if  successful,  they  will  surely  be  exposed  to  a  thousand  tempta- 
tions: if  they  love  excitement  for  its  own  sake — the  noisy  meetings, 
the  conventions,  the  elections — this  love  for  excitement  will  grow 
upon  them,  and  they  will  soon  be  on  the  high  road  to  ruin. 

If  any  one  is  determined  to  achieve  distinction  in  politics,  let  him 
first  obtain  a  competency  in  some  trade,  profession,  or  pursuit,  and 
then,  even  if  unsuccessful  in  politics,  the  misstep  will  not  be  irre- 
trievable. But,  young  men,  do  not  be  beguiled  by  the  example  of 
our  Ferguson,  even  if  you  possess  his  splendid  talents — even  if  you 
could  achieve  the  success  he  did :  look  at  the  end!  There  he  lies  in 
a  bloody  grave.  Let  your  habits  be  fixed.  "Let  all  the  ends  thou 
aimest  at  be  thy  country's  and  thy  God's." 

Fellow-citizens,  I  have  said  what  I  supposed  this  occasion  most 
required.  If  I  had  been  told  sixteen  years  ago  that  it  would  be  my 
fortune  to  stand  by  the  bloody  grave  of  my  young  friend,  in  the  city 
of  Sacramento  on  the  Pacific  coast,  I  could  scarcely  have  believed  it 
had  an  angel  from  heaven  told  me  so;  for  at  that  time  there  was  no 
civilized  Pacific  coast.  Then  Ms  course  was  unmarked,  and  my 
future  was  so  marked  out,  that  it  would  seem  but  little  less  than  a 
miracle  that  I  should  stand  here,  by  his  dying  request,  to  offer  a  few 
poor  remarks  over  his  bier,  before  he  is  laid  to  rest  in  the  place  he 
loved  so  well — in  the  city  named  after  the  sweeping  Sacramento. 
But  who  can  tell  what  a  day  may  bring  forth  ?  Here  we  see  the 
sudden,  untimely  end  of  one  who  was  amiable,  gifted,  and  who  was 


332  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

looking  forward  to  a  long  career  of  lionor  and  fame.  And  perhaps 
it  may  be  my  lot  to  be  shortly  laid  in  the  grave ;  and  perhaps  in  this 
assembly  some  one  may  be  called  npon  to  address  some  remarks 
over  my  poor  lifeless  body — even  as  I  have  been  called  upon  on  the 
present  occasion;  and  if  this  should  be  so,  I  pray  that  that  friend 
may  accord  to  me  as  much  of  praise  and  as  little  of  blame  as  will 
be  consistent  with  the  truth. 

In  conclusion,  I  would  remark  that  I  have  no  words  sufficient  to 
express  my  own  personal  regret.  I  have  lost  a  warm  personal  friend. 
I  may  find  others,  but  I  shall  not  be  able  to  find  friends  that  I  have 
loved  in  other  years.  I  shall  not  often  find  those  to  whom  I  can,  as 
I  could  to  him,  talk  of  the  old  familiar  times  and  the  lessons  I  taught 
him  in  early  life — of  the  virtues  and  example  of  his  parents — of  his 
mother's,  his  poor  afflicted  mother's  affection  and  love — of  his  old 
contests — his  old  hopes,  so  often  broken.  I  shall  not  often  find 
friends  like  these,  nor  can  the  breach  which  death  has  made  be  so 
easily  repaired. 

Let  me  hope,  for  myself  and  us  all,  that  w^hen  we  have  filled  our 
allotted  space  in  this  world;  when  we  are  attended  by  weeping  friends, 
for  the  purpose  of  removing  us  to  our  last  resting  place,  that  it  shall 
not  be  said  of  us  that  we  have  lived  without  purpose,  but  that  we 
have  gathered  friends  in  the  days  of  our  manhood;  that  we  have 
left  fruits  to  bloom  when  we  have  departed. 


DISCOUESE  ON  THE  DEATH  OF  HON.  WM.  I.  FERGUSON, 

DeUvered  in  the  Congregational  Churcli,  Sacramento,  Cal,,  Sept.  16th,  1858. 
BY  KEV.  J.  A.  BENTON. 

"Thy  hands  were  not  bound,  nor  thy  feet  put  into  fetters:  as  a  man  falleth 
before  -kicked  men,  so  fellest  thou.  And  all  the  people  wept  again  over  him." — 
II.  Samuel,  iii.  34. 

The  worst  has  been  realized.  The  poor  mangled  corse  of  our 
senator  lies  before  us.  Others  may  have  felt  the  same :  I  certainly 
have  feared  from  the  first,  that  it  would  come  to  this,  and  have  so 
expressed  myself  within  a  few  days.  For  such  were  the  antecedents, 
the  circumstances,  and  the  shock  of  the  wound  he  received,  that 
they  would  have  imperiled  the  life  of  the  most  robust  man;  and  they 
rendered  it  almost  certain  that  a  temperament  and  a  constitution  like 
his,  so  slender  and  delicate,  would  not  long  survive.  And  there  are 
many  who  have  been  incredulous  regarding  the  reports  of  his  im- 
proved condition,  as  knowing  they  were  premature;  because  the 
worst  stage  of  the  difficulty  was  not  passed,  nor  the  point  of  danger 
turned.     When  the  time  for  decision  came,  a  careful  examination 


WILLIAM    I.    FERGUSON.  ot'J 

showed  the  wound  gangrenous,  and  the  parts  adjacent  moribund. 
Speedy  amputation  of  the  limb  afforded  the  only  hope  of  life ;  and 
even  that  was  dim.  And  such  was  the  severity  of  the  x:roceeding, 
though  the  sufferer  was  under  the  influence  of  ansesthetics,  and  such 
his  physical  i)rostration,  that  his  powers  did  not  rally  again  nor  his 
senses  return.  And  so  his  eyes  were  closed  upon  the  light  of  life, 
and  he  passed  unconsciously  away. 

We  shall  look  upon  him  no  more.  Three  or  four  short  weeks 
have  sufficed .  for  all  this.  A  month  ago  the  deceased  was  here 
among  his  friends,  in  his  usual  health,  vigor,  and  activity.  Ho  was 
uncommonly  spmted,  cheerful,  and  energetic.  He  was  in  his  ele- 
ment; in  the  exercise  of  some  of  his  peculiar  faculties,  which  always 
came  out  with  remarkable  force  in  the  midst  of  a  political  excitement. 
He  went  to  San  Francisco  to  remain,  as  he  supposed,  but  a  fcv/  days. 
There  he  fell  into  a  personal  and  political  controversy;  gave  some 
offence  to  hi3  opponent;  was  challenged  to  mortal  combat;  stooped  to 
the  acceptance  of  the  proposal;  fell  at  the  foiuih  fire,  and  v.as  car- 
ried from  the  field  badly  wounded.  After  four  v/eeks'  absence,  and 
three  of  lingeiing  and  sufieiing — of  alternating  hopes  and  fears — 
he  is  with  us  once  again;  but  only  in  these  lifeless  remains,  which 
have  come  to  be  garnered,  as  treasures,  in  the  burying  place  of  those 
who  in  his  life  had  dehghted  to  do  him  honor. 

It  saddens  us  to  know  that  we  shall  no  more  loo]:  on  his  familiar 
features,  eo  finely  chiseled,  so  exquisitely  moulded,  so  handsomely 
combined,  so  vivacious  in  theu*  play,  and  so  expressive  of  the  varied 
emotions  of  the  soul.  The  full  brain  that  wrought  under  that  fine 
brow  and  capacious  forehead,  throbs  no  more.  AVc  cannot  see 
again  the  rare  head  and  face  that,  but  for  an  early  thinning  out  of 
the  hair,  had  been  more  than  beautiful:  they  were  even  grand. 
The  hands,  the  feet,  the  skin,  the  movement,  the  tone,  as  well  as 
the  features,  all  were  expressive  of  fine  sensibilities,  genius,  and 
character.  None  could  behold  him  and  not  be  impressed.  None 
could  turn  away  and  quickly  lose  that  image  from  hia  meinoiy. 

It  saddens  us  more  to  think  in  what  a  conflict  our  senator  came 
to  his  untimely  end,  and  by  what  a  i^rocess  our  community  has  been 
deprived  of  his  services  in  the  coming  years. 

From  the  Christian  standpoint,  no  duel  can  ever  be  justified;  nor 
anyi^arty  thereto.  This  is  conceded  on  every  hand,  and  so  i^ositively 
that  it  never  is  expected  that  a  professing  Christian  will  ever  send 
or  accept  a  challenge;  and  he  is  always  exempted  from  the  operation 
of  the  "  code  of  honor"  without  loss  of  reputation,  or  the  disparage- 
ment of  his  spirit,  bravery,  or  courage. 

From  the  standpoint  of  society,  there  is  offered  somewhat  that 
may  palliate,  if  it  cannot  justify,  the  practice  of  dueling.  It  is  al- 
leged that  there  are  some  personal  offences  of  which  the  civil  law 
takes  no  cognizance,  or  against  which  it  affords  no  adequate  protec- 
tion; that,  therefore,  there  must  be  some  social  law,  to  the  usages 
of  which  such  cases  shall  be  referred;  and  that  the  "  code  of  honor" 
is  such  law,  and  the  practice  of  dueling  the  best  method  of  arbitra- 
ment yet  discovered.     To  support  these  allegations,  the  instances 


384  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

brought  forward  are  those  in  which  the  law^s  of  a  State  are  not  out- 
wardly violated,  while  yet  the  oifenders  exhibit  such  an  injurious, 
overbearing,  and  contumelious  spirit,  such  studied  insult,  such 
malicious  hate,  and  such  fiendish  passion,  that,  without  quick  resent- 
ment and  revenge,  the  offended  parties  could  no  longer  hold  up  their 
heads,  or  move  in  theu'  accustomed  circles,  except  with  danger  of 
being  rejected,  disparaged,  and  despised,  or  meet  the  offending 
parties  on  terms  of  equality,  and  with  proper  feeling  of  self-respect 
and  complacence. 

There  is  not  time  now  to  controvert  these  statements  in  full,  on 
the  basis  of  reason  and  common  sense.  I  shall  only  say  that  the 
edge  of  all  these  allegations  is  turned  by  the  fact  that  men  have 
met  such  offences,  have  refused  to  fight  duels,  and  have  really  lost 
nothing  by  the  course  they  took;  but  rather  have  risen  in  the  gene- 
ral estimate,  and  held  a  loftier  social  position  ever  afterward  than 
would  otherwise  have  been  possible.  The  one  brief  reason,  patent 
to  all  men  of  sense  is,  that  the  man  of  high  spirit,  great  courage, 
and  lofty  character,  can  display  his  qualities  without  resorting  to 
the  duel;  and  one  who  has  them  not,  will  never  bring  away  from  the 
dueling  ground  any  thing  more  of  these  qualities  than  their  grim 
and  ghastly  shadows.  But  if  we  even  assume  that  there  are  times 
when  the  duel  is  a  necessity,  and  occasions  on  which  it  is  allowable 
to  have  recourse  to  it,  it  is  certain  that  all  occasions  are  not  fit  ones, 
and  that  many  personal  offences  ought  to  be  excluded  from  the 
number  that  are  actionable  under  the  "  code  of  honor."  There  are 
such  exclusions;  and  some  offences  are  regarded  as  unworthy  of  a 
settlement  on  the  field  of  honor.  Yet,  all  sensible  men  must  admit, 
even  those  who  justify  dueling  in  extreme  cases,  that  matters  trifling 
and  contemptible  are  in  our  day  far  too  frequently  made  the  basis 
of  a  challenge,  and  that  the  whole  matter  needs  a  reformation. 

Now,  admitting  for  the  moment  that  some  occasions  may  justify 
dueling,  I  afiirm  that  political  differences,  and  the  disturbances, 
disputes,  and  imputations  growing  out  of  them,  are  not  sufficient 
occasions.  They  spring  out  of  impulse,  hot  blood,  the  excitement 
of  the  moment,  and  are  always  to  be  taken  with  abatement,  and  men 
can  endure  them  for  a  time  without  serious  loss  or  damage;  and 
when  days  are  past,  they  will  be  withdrawn  and  apologized  for  by 
any  with  whom  it  is  worth  while  for  a  man  to  associate.  Political 
differences  there  must  be.  Disputes  and  bickerings  will  occur. 
Epigram,  repartee,  the  shaft  of  wit,  will  fly,  and  may  sting.  Accu- 
sations will  arise;  recriminations  be  made,  and  imputations  hurled. " 
These  are  unavoidable  incidents  to  the  existence  of  parties  and  the 
freedom  of  debate.  They  grow  in  some  measure  out  of  our  institu- 
tions and  our  social  state,  and  they  ought  to  be  permitted  and 
allowed  licenses,  for  which  no  one  is  answerable  except  at  the  bar 
of  public  opinion.  They  ought  not  to  be  regarded  as  insults,  or  as 
touching  the  tender  parts  of  character,  or  as  really  derogatory  to  a 
man's  reputation.  And  there  ought  to  be  a  combined  effort,  if  not 
to  suppress  dueling,  at  least  to  banish  all  political  troubles  and  their 
outgrowths  from  the  operation  of  the  dueling  code.     A  determined 


WILLIAM    I.    FERGUSON.  335 

and  persistent  effort  might  accomplish  this.  For  there  is  no  good 
reason  why  our  political  differences,  or  animosities  even,  should  be 
carried  beyond  their  proper  arena,  and  allowed  to  invade  the  social 
circle  and  disturb  the  harmonies  of  domestic  life.  It  is  time  we 
learned  a  wider  toleration  of  these  differences,  and  forbade  their 
entrance  into  the  common  walks  of  life.  Till  we  do,  opinion  is  not 
free,  and  the  conduct  of  life  in  ci^il  matters  is  subjected  to  a  social 
inquisition,  if  not  a  tyranny,  as  impolitic  as  it  is  unjust. 

I  say  these  things,  because  this  duel  grew  primarily  out  of  a 
political  difference  and  discussion  in  the  midst  of  asocial  scene.  It 
is  only  the  latest,  and  not  the  first  duel  fought  in  oui'  State,  that  has 
had  a  similar  origin  and  a  political  significance.  If  I  am  not  mis- 
taken, political  reasons  were  at  the  bottom  of  the  duels  between 
Denver  and  Gilbert,  Broderick  and  Smith,  Gwin  and  McCorkle, 
Washington  and  Washburn — others,  also,  it  may  be — and  finally, 
Johnston  and  Ferguson.  Of  these,  the  first  and  the  last  onh'  were 
fatal  to  one  of  the  parties  in  each.  And  God  grant  that  it  may  be 
years  and  generations  before  our  annals  shall  be  blotted  with  the 
record,  and  our  soil  stained  with  the  blood  of  another  fatal  duel:  and 
that  we  may  never  more  hear  of  a  resort  to  so  ciniel  an  arbitrator  as 
this  for  the  settlement  of  difficulties  arising  out  of  the  ever-changing 
phases  of  political  strife  and  political  affaii's!  As  I  am  not  familiar 
with  the  intricacies  of  the  "code  of  honor,"  nor  conversant  with  the 
details  of  proceedings  under  it,  I  do  not  feel  competent  to  ciiticize 
the  transactions  of  the  case  which  just  now  has  had  so  lamentable  a 
result.  Bat  I  may  say  that  the  contest  might  have  terminated  sooner, 
and  otherwise,  without  disparagement  to  either  of  the  parties.  Three 
exchanges  of  shots  were  as  good  proof  of  personal  qualities  as  a  dozen 
could  have  been.  And  I  agree  with  the  i^erson  who  had  the  loading 
of  the  pistols,  that  then,  at  the  most,  after  the  third  fire,  when  the 
deceased  had  only  escaped  the  loss  of  the  lower  part  of  the  face  by 
the  momentary  elevation  of  the  chin,  it  was  time  to  have  done.  But 
the  demand  for  satisfaction  was  not  yet  met;  and  the  fourth  fire  laid 
our  young  senator  low,  and  has  brought  him  hither,  at  lengih, 
"bound  hand  and  foot  in  his  grave-clothes." 

W^e  will  turn  now  to  oiu'  text  and  its  application.  A  long  contest 
had  been  going  on  between  the  house  of  Saul  and  the  house  of  David 
for  supremacy  in  Israel.  Abner  was  a  prominent  leader  in  the  house 
of  Saul,  as  Joab  and  his  brothers  were  in  the  house  of  Da^dd.  In 
process  of  time,  after  having  fought  many  battles  for  the  house  of 
Saul,  in  one  of  which  he  had  slain  Asahel,  Joab's  brother,  Abner 
became  alienated  from  his  old  party  and  foiTaer  associates,  and  re- 
solved to  transfer  his  allegiance  to  the  house  of  David  He  had 
visited  the  head  of  the  new  party;  had  made  his  negotiations;  and 
had  gone  away,  in  peace,  to  consummate  the  aiTangement.  On  his 
way  homeward  at  the  well  of  Sirah,  Abner  was  overtaken  by  mes- 
sengers from  David's  premier  (to  which  transaction  the  king  was  not 
privj')  requii-ing  his  return  to  Hebron.  He  went  back  with  the  mes- 
sengers to  the  city  gates.  There  he  was  met  by  Joab,  who  drew  him 
aside  as  if  to  speak  with  him  peaceably  and  in  quiet.     Then  taking 


336  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OP   THE    PACIFIC. 

him  at  a  disadvantage,  when  Abner  was  suspecting  no  harm,  Joab 
thrust  a  dagger  in  his  side,  and  slew  him.  Eesentment  against 
Abner  for  the  past  was  one  of  the  motives  to  the  deed;  and  perhaps 
a  jealousy  of  him  for  the  future,  lest  himself  might  be  overshadowed 
by  one  eo  eminent,  was  another.  Such  a  death,  of  such  a  man,  took 
the  people  by  surprise.  The  sensation  was  deep  and  wide.  The 
feeling  roee  almost  to  indignation,  and  the  profoundest  sorrov/  filled 
all  Hebron.  And  David  said  to  all  the  people  that  were  with  him, 
"  Eend  your  clothes,  and  gird  you  with  sackcloth,  and  mourn  before 
Abner."  And  King  David  himself  followed  the  bier.  And  they 
burled  Abner  in  Hebron;  and  the  king  lifted  up  his  voice  and  wept 
at  the  grave  of  Abner;  and  all  the  people  vfept.  And  the  king  la- 
mented over  Abner  and  said :  Died  Abner  as  the  fool  dieth  ?  Thy 
hands  were  not  bound,  nor  thy  feet  put  in  fetters:  as  a  man  lalleth 
before  Vvicked  men,  so  fellest  thou.  And  all  the  people  wept  again 
over  him.  And  when  all  the  people  came  to  cause  David  to  eat 
meat  while  it  was  yet  day,  David  sware,  saying,  God  do  so  to  me, 
and  more  also,  if  I  taste  bread,  or  aught  else,  till  the  sun  be  down. 
And  ail  the  people  underritood  that  day  that  it  was  not  in  the  heart 
of  the  king  to  slay  Abner.  And  the  king  said  unto  his  servants, 
Know  ye  not  that  there  is  a  j)rince  and  a  great  man  fallen  this  day 
in  Israel?  And  I  am  this  day  weak,  though  anointed  king,  and 
these  men,  the  sons  of  Zeruiah,  are  too  hard  for  me."  The  analogy 
betvveen  the  scenes  here  described  and  these  which  we  witness  to- 
day, will  not  hold  in  all  the  particulars,  but  at  some  poin':s  it  is  a 
striking  one.  Here  lies  the  body  of  one  v/ho  has  had  a  prominent 
place  and  run  a  brilliant  career.  As  a  public  man,  he  has  belonged 
to  different  and  opposing  j)arties.  The  transfer  of  allegiance  from 
one  to  another  has  created  some  enmities,  given  rise  to  some  jeal- 
ousies, and  left  memories  that  only  v/aited  for  their  opportunity  to 
render  themselves  formidable.  He  vvas  alike  eminent  with  what- 
ever party  he  acted,  and  could  not  fail  to  be  regarded  by  any  part}'' 
as  an  acquisition.  He  was  a  great  man,  and  a  kind  of  prince  among 
political  aspirants :  he  was  held  in  esteem  and  honored  by  the  masses 
of  the  people.  He  fell  in  the  midst  of  life,  when  new  honors  and 
a  fresh  career  vv-ere  apparently  awaiting  him.  He  fell  by  the  hands 
of  one  who  should  have  been  the  very  last  man  to  shed  his  blood; 
and  in  death  he  is  mourned  by  rulers  and  people,  who  gather  with  a 
common  sorrow  to  follow  him  to  his  grave  and  v^^eep  at  his  tomb. 
In  these  respects,  certainly,  the  person  v/hose  obsequies  we  observe 
to-day  resembles  the  man  concerning  whom  my  text  had  utterance. 
And  vv'e,  too,  are  weak  this  day,  though  clothed  with  power;  and 
these  modern  sons  of  Zeruiah  have  been  too  hard  for  us. 

Our  friend,  whom  with  lamentations  we  are  here  to  bury,  has 
been  for  three  years  one  of  our  senators  in  the  State  Legislature, 
and  is  the  lirsfc  one  in  our  history  who  has  died  during  his  term  of 
office.  He  was  fitted  in  many  ways  for  a  leader,  and  had  those 
social  qualities,  that  pleasing  presence,  that  fascination  of  manner, 
that  humor,  j)leasantry,  and  wit,  that  fluency  of  speech,  that  raci- 
ness  of  otyle,  that  gift  of  eloquence,  and  that  power  of  command 


WILLIAM   I.    FERGUSON.  337 

which  always  raise  a  man  to  a  kind  of  supremacy  over  the  masses 
of  the  people.  He  had  a  singular  insight,  a  ready  tact,  skill  to  meet 
emergencies,  confidence  in  his  own  unfailing  resources,  and  that 
determination  to  suffer  no  defeat  which  is  always  sure  to  win  success. 
His  mind  was  naturally  cool,  clear,  and  bright  in  its  action,  and  his 
intellect  was  one  of  a  high  order.  And  those  who  have  heard  him 
most  at  the  bar,  in  the  Senate  chamber,  and  before  the  people,  are 
the  ones  that  have  the  highest  opinion  of  his  abilities,  and  give  him 
exalted  praise.  As  a  public  man,  he  has  made  as  few  mistakes,  and 
given  as  little  offence,  as  any  one  who  has  ever  held  the  same  office 
among  us;  and,  in  the  estimate  of  many,  he  has  rendered  as  much 
service  to  this  community  and  to  the  State  as  any  one  of  our  various 
senators  ever  has. 

In  private  life,  Mr.  Ferguson  had  faults:  they  were  well  known: 
he  confessed  them :  he  attempted  to  conceal  nothing.  In  his  frank 
and  generous  natiu'e,  there  was  nought  mean,  furtive,  or  under- 
hand. His  eccentricities  were  numerous,  and  were  all  his  own;  and 
his  methods  were  such  as  to  throw  a  charm  around  habits  and  prac- 
tices that  in  other  men  would  have  been  accounted  gross  or 
offensive. 

The  pravity  of  some  men  is  unimpassioned,  steady,  bitter,  of  set 
purpose,  in  foresight  of  consequences,  and  void  of  the  wish  to  be 
other  than  it  is,  or  to  do  better.  The  pravity  of  others  is  impulsive, 
genial,  passionate,  with,  no  look  towards  consequences,  stealing  upon 
them  through  sensibilities  delicately  strung,  that  wave  and  vibrate 
as  with  some  ethereal  touch;  and  finally  lift  the  swell  and  wake  the 
storm  which  sweep  the  men  away.  And  their  language  always  is: 
*'When  we  would  do  good,  evil  is  present  with  us."  To  this  latter 
class  belonged  our  friend;  and  fairness  demands  that  we  allow  what- 
ever abatement  of  censure  such  a  temperament  entitles  him  to.  His 
convictions  were  right,  his  feelings  not  calloused,  and  his  whole 
moral  nature  quick  and  sensitive;  so  that  he  could  never  attempt  to 
justify  himself  in  his  indulgences,  nor  cease  to  condemn  himself  for 
his  wrongs. 

It  can  do  no  harm  now  to  refer  to  a  fact  already  known  to  some, 
that  may  have  had  something  to  do  with  not  a  few  of  the  eccen- 
tricities that  have  marked  our  friend's  brief  life.  He  was  the  sub- 
ject, some  years  ago,  of  one  of  those  disappointments  which,  now 
and  then,  permanently  wound  the  affections,  darken  the  path,  sad- 
den the  life,  blight  the  hopes,  and  mar  the  prospects  of  young  men 
in  the  outset  of  their  career.  Such  a  misfortune  is  peculiarly  dis- 
astrous in  its  effects  upon  some  natures;  and  while  it  is  wept  over 
in  the  other  sex,  in  ours  it  is  commonl}^  the  theme  of  mirth.  How 
seriously  it  was  felt  by  the  deceased,  and  to  what  extent  it  affected 
him  for  the  worse,  we  shall  never  know  with  precision;  but  the  more 
I  have  thought  of  it,  the  more  I  am  convinced  that  its  influence  was 
considerable. 

Fellow-citizens,  a  bright  light  is  quenched;  another  star  has 
fallen  from  our  sky;  one  more  shall  we  miss  from  among  the  coun- 

22 


338  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OP  THE   PACIFIC. 

tenances  that  shine  on  us;    another  form  of  pride  and  power  is 
turning  back  to  ashes  before  our  eyes. 

"We  are  here  in  the  presence  of  Death,  and  of  Him  who  is  greater 
than  Death;  without  whose  permission  the  grim  messenger  had  not 
been  here  to  gather  this  form  beneath  his  dark  wings.  It  seems  hard 
to  mere  mortal  thought,  that  one  should  die  thus,  in  the  prime  of 
his  manhood,  in  the  maturing  season  of  his  faculties,  with  high  heart 
and  hopes  bright,  with  greener  laurels  yet  before  him,  with  the  pur- 
pose to  win  a  name  on  wider  fields,  and  lead  a  life  that  should  carry 
joy  into  the  bosom  of  the  household  whence  he  wandered.  But  this 
life  is  cut  off;  these  purposes  are  thwarted,  and  these  hopes  have 
perished. 

StiU,  heaven  is  over  us,  and  God  is  gracious.  And  though  at 
last,  death  came  suddenly  upon  the  departed,  it  came  not  quite  un- 
expectedly; and  we  may  hope  that  changes  were  going  on  within 
him,  and  that  some  preparation  for  another  world  was  making  as  he 
lay  through  those  long  days  and  nights,  thinking,  planning,  re- 
solving, and  often  giving  utterance  to  his  longing  to  lead  a  different 
life,  and  be  a  better  man. 

Standing  here  by  these  motionless  limbs,  how  unconsciously  rises 
to  our  lips  the  prayer  of  the  Psalmist :  "  O  my  God,  take  me  not 
away  in  the  midst  of  my  days :  spare  me  a  little  before  I  go  hence 
and  be  seen  no  more."  And  while  we  thus  indulge  our  sorrow  and 
give  expression  to  grief,  let  us  remember  that  there  are  other  hearts 
that  will  bleed  and  other  eyes  that  will  be  wet  with  tears,  weeks  after 
our  mourning  shall  have  somewhat  abated  its  intensity.  To  the 
widow's  God  let  us  commend  the  mother  who  is  so  early  bereaved  of 
the  son  whom  she  may  have  loved  to  regard  as  the  support  and 
solace  of  her  declining  years.  Let  us  pray  for  the  welfare  of  sister 
and  brothers,  who  shall  never  again  welcome  to  their  homes  the  de- 
parted one,  or  fold  him  in  their  fond  embrace.  The  Lord  be  gracious 
to  them,  that  their  sun  go  not  down  at  noonday,  nor  their  hopes  and 
plans  of  life  be  suddenly  broken  and  scattered. 

Ye  rulers  of  the  State !  Magistrates,  Legislators,  and  Judges !  this 
scene  admonishes  you.  How  short  is  human  life — how  many  our 
exposures — how  unreliable  our  prospects,  and  how  closely  the  deepest 
shadows  are  edged  upon  the  spot  where  the  brightest  sunlight  falls ! 
The  night  comes.  Do  what  you  have  to  accomplish :  redeem  all  your 
pledges;  endear  yourselves  unto  the  people  who  have  so  generously 
trusted  you,  by  the  heartiness  and  value  of  your  services;  and  render 
all  due  homage  unto  Him  before  whose  tribunal  your  acts  and  lives 
must  pass  in  solemn  review. 

Need  I  point  you,  young  men,  to  this  lifeless  clay,  and  bid  you 
remember  that  you  know  not  what  a  day  may  bring  forth?  Voices 
from  within  are  making  themselves  heard  to-day.  Heed  them,  and 
do  not  forget.  Learn  by  what  affections,  generosities,  activities,  and 
virtues  you  may  commend  yourselves  to  the  common  regard  and  love 
of  men.  Understand,  also,  by  what  indulgences  and  passions  one 
may  mar  his  life  and  work  toward  the  undoing  of  himself.     Deplore 


WILLIAM   I.    FERGUSON.  339 

the  follies  and  vices  of  other  men,  and  harbor  not  the  same  in  your 
own  bosoms.  Be  ever  mindful  of  Him  who  rules  in  pro\adence, 
without  whose  notice  not  a  sparrow  falls,  and  break  not  his  wise  laws. 
In  your  sin  and  sorrow,  go  to  Him  with  whom  is  forgiveness,  the 
world's  blest  Kedeemer.  And  as  you  would  fain  be  adjudged  by 
Him  to  blessing  and  honor  in  the  great  day  of  assize,  live  ye  so 
that  He  cannot  but  say,  "Well  done:  enter  into  my  joy.'' 

'*  So  live,  that  wlien  thy  summons  comes  to  join 
The  innumerable  caravan  which  moves 
To  that  nn  sterious  realm  where  each  shall  take 
His  chamber  in  the  silent  halls  of  death. 
Thou  go  not,  like  the  quarry  slave  at  night, 
Scourged  to  his  dungeon;  but,  sustained  and  soothed 
By  an  unfaltering  trust,  approach  thy  grave 
Like  one  who  wraps  the  drapery  of  his  couch 
About  him,  and  lies  down  to  pleasant  dreams." 

Nay,  more :  Live  so  that  ye  may  rise  toward  the  rapturous  triumph 
of  Him  who  said,  in  full  view  of  his  exit  from  the  world:  "The  time 
of  my  departure  is  at  hand :  I  have  fought  a  good  fight :  I  have 
finished  my  course:  I  have  kept  the  faith.  Henceforth  there  is  laid 
up  for  me  a  crown  of  righteousness,  which  the  Lord,  the  righteous 
Judge,  shall  give  me  at  that  day." 


EDWARD  J.  C.  KEWEN. 

Author    of    the    "Blove    Papkbs." 


11  HIS  gentleman's  father,  Captain  Kewen,  a  native  of 
-  the  Emerald  Isle,  emigrated  to  the  United  States  a 
short  time  previous  to  our  last  war  with  England,  and  ac- 
quired much  military  distinction  at  the  battle  of  Kew 
Orleans.  Locating  a  trading  post  upon  the  Tombigbee 
in  1820,  in  a  region  almost  uninhabited  save  by  savages, 
he  succeeded  in  a  very  few  years  iii  accumulating  a  large 
fortune.  By  his  marriage  wdth  a  Miss  Weaver,  an  accom- 
plished lady  from  Tennessee,  he  had  issue  three  sons,  the 
eldest  of  whom,  and  the  sole  survivor,  is  our  present 
subject. 

Captain  Kewen  forfeited  his  life  in  a  duel,  leaving  be- 
hind him  a  brilliant  reputation  as  a  soldier,  and  an  un- 
spotted name  for  integrity. 

Edward  J.  C.  Kew^en  was  born  at  Columbus,  Mississip- 
pi, Nov.  2d,  1825.  At  thirteen  years  of  age  he  became  a 
student  in  the  Wesleyan  University,  located  at  Middle- 
town,  Conn.  He  had  been  there  some  three  years,  when 
the  untoward  speculations  of  his  guardian  hurried  him  to 
his  Mississippi  home ;  and  he  arrived  there  to  learn  that  his 
once  princely  inheritance  had  dwindled  down  to  a  mere  pit- 
tance. Thus  reduced  from  affluence  to  comparative  pov- 
erty, with  his  two  younger  brothers  dependent  upon  his 
exertions  for  subsistence,  he  resolved  upon  the  profession 
of  the  law.     He  betook  himself  to  solitary  study,  with  a 


342  REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

persistence  and  assiduity  almost  unprecedented  in  those 
of  his  extreme  youth. 

He  had  reached  the  age  of  nineteen,  with  but  few  ac- 
quaintances and  associations  in  his  native  town.  This  was 
in  1844,  in  the  midst  of  a  most  exciting  political  contest. 
By  some  means  he  was  selected  to  deliver  the  opening 
address  before  what  was  then  styled  a  "  Clay  Club."  His 
primal  effort  on  that  occasion  acquired  for  him  at  once 
an  extraordinary  reputation  for  oratory.  His  extreme 
youth,  peculiarity  of  style,  copiousness  of  diction,  earn- 
estness and  polish  of  manner,  gave  him  sudden  and 
unwonted  fame.  He  was  seized  upon  by  the  leading 
spirits  of  the  party  to  which  he  belonged,  in  a  section  of 
country  distinguished  for  its  eloquent  men,  as  one  of 
their  most  efficient  speakers,  and  dispatched  to  remote 
sections. 

The  writer  of  the  present  notice  has  heard  an  inci- 
dent illustrative  of  young  Kewen's  daring  and  fervid 
elocution.  At  a  prominent  point  in  his  native  State  the 
people  of  both  parties  had  m^assed  together  to  enjoy  bar- 
bacued  provisions  and  the  attrition  of  oratory.  Two 
whole  days  had  passed  away  in  the  social  and  politieal 
revel,  but  very  much  to  the  discomfiture  of  Whig  doc- 
trines. Such  giants  as  Geo.  R.  Clayton  and  H.  L.  Harris 
and  Jno.  B.  Cobb,  from  unaccountable  reasons,  had  failed 
to  present  themselves  to  efFulge  upon  the  beauties  and 
strength  of  a  protective  tariff  and  other  germane  Whig 
topics.  In  despair,  and  at  the  very  finale  of  the  meeting, 
the  young  stranger  Kewen,  a  beardless  boy,  was  reluct- 
antly thrown  before  them.  He  had  now  some  experience, 
it  is  true,  in  public  declamation,  and  youth  has  its  mag- 
netism and  sympathy;  yet,  they  say  astonishment  soon 
melted  into  earnest  admiration,  and  the  comparative  boy 
ran  away  with  the  hearts  and  the  judgments  of  the  serried 
crowd.  Regardless  of  party  discrimination,  they  did  a 
strange  thing  for  that  region.  They  seized  hold  of  the 
juvenile  orator  as  he  finished  his  glowing  peroration,  and 
bore  him  around  upon  their  shoulders,  and  would  not  be 
content  until  he  had  given  them  another  specimen  of  his 
eloquence  the  same  night  in  a  neighboring  court-house. 


EDWARD   J.    C.    KEWEN.  343 

Such  triumplis  are  very  rare.  After  the  election  of 
1844,  Mr.  Kewen  became  the  editor  of  the  Columbus 
Whig^  and  remained  in-  that  occupation  for  two  years. 

Removing  to  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  for  the  purpose  of  prac- 
ticing law,  and  meeting  with  peculiar  success,  we  find  him 
again  upon  the  hustings  after  the  nomination  of  Zachary 
Taylor  for  the  Presidency.  The  papers  of  that  day  teem 
with  the  most  extravagant  encomiums  upon  his  orator- 
ical abilities.  In  commendation  of  his  forensic  efforts, 
partizanship  lost  its  rancor,  for  praise  flew  equally  from 
his  opponents  as  his  friends.  In  his  fervid  pilgrimage  he 
traversed  several  of  the  Middle  and  Southern  States. 

The  reader  of  this  sketch  has  already  detected  in  its 
subject  a  peculiar  restlessness  so  characteristic  of  men  of 
his  ardent  temperament,  and  will  not  be  surprised  to 
learn  that  he  became  one  of  the  innumerable  throng  that 
hurried  to  this  western  El  Dorado  some  twenty  years  ago. 

Perhaps  the  blind  boy,  Dan  Cupid,  was  one  of  the  im- 
pelling causes  of  his  sudden  migration.  It  is  very  cer- 
tain that  he  fell  in  with  the  caravan  of  Dr.  T.'  J.  White 
and  family,  and  meandered  across  the  "plains"  in  their 
companionshij^,  and  became  the  fortunate  husband  of 
the  Doctor's  accomplished  daughter  upon  their  arrival  at 
Sacramento,  December  10th,  1849. 

It  would  seem  that  his  fame  as  an  orator  had  anteceded 
him.  Some  occasion  prompting  it,  he  was  summoned  to 
the  rostrum  the  very  day  his  w^eary  footsteps  first  traversed 
the  then  primitive  city  of  Sacramento;  and  his  instan- 
taneous popularity  was  evinced  by  his  election  to  the 
responsible  office  of  Attorney- General  by  the  State  Legis- 
lature soon  after  his  advent  upon  our  coast.  This  office 
he  resigned,  as  it  compelled  his  residence  at  a  distance 
from  his  adopted  city,  in  which  he  had  sprung  into  a  lu- 
crative practice  in  his  profession. 

If  other  evidences  of  moral  and  physical  courage  were 
wanting,  his  character  in  this  respect  was  especially  man- 
ifest in  his  enlistment  against  the  Squatters,  who,  at  that 
early  period  of  our  history  had  banded  in  murderous 
clans.  Under  threats  of  assassination,  he  boldly  repaired 
to  one  of  their  convocations  on  the  Levee,  and  succeeded 


344  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

by  the  audacity  of  his  tongue  in  dispersing  the  threaten- 
ing and  insurrectionary  crowd. 

In  May,  1851,  he  was  nominated  as  a  candidate  on  the 
Whig  ticket  for  Congress;  and  it  was  in  that  canvass 
that  he  displayed  the  full  maturity  and  strength  of  his 
peculiar  powers.  Often  speaking  several  times  during 
the  same  day,  he  seemed  exhaustless  in  mind  and  body. 
Though  unsuccessful,  the  small  majority  obtained  by  his 
opponent  was  a  high  compliment  to  the  zeal  and  elo- 
quence of  Col.  Kewen  in  a  State  Democratic  at  the  time 
by  many  thousands. 

Leaving  Sacramento  in  the  summer  of  1852,  for  San 
Francisco,  he  practiced  his  profession  in  the  latter  city 
with  eminent  success,  until  his  restless  and  daring  mind 
drove  him  into  a  new  career.  His  brother,  A.  L.  Kewen^ 
second  in  command  to  Col.  Walker,  was  shot  and  killed 
in  the  first  battle  of  Rivas,  Nicaragua,  in  June,  1855. 
Thomas,  the  youngest  of  the  three,  had  died  the  preced- 
ing year  on  the  Island  of  Tabogo  in  the  province  of  Pan- 
ama. Alone  in  the  world,  and  we  may  naturally  suppose, 
brooding  in  deepest  melancholy  over  the  early  death  of 
his  only  and  loved  kindred,  it  is  not  surprising  that  one 
of  his  ardent  and  generous  impulses  would  seek  relief  in 
the  first  daring  enterprise  that  offered.  He  was  an  inti- 
mate friend  of  Col.  W^alker,  and  had  hitherto  resisted  his 
earnest  importunities  to  embark  in  his  wild  adventure. 
Walker,  now  the  military  head  of  the  new  government, 
welcomed  him  with  open  arms,  and  at  once  commissioned 
him  as  the  financial  agent  of  the  Republic;  and  it  was  not 
long  before  he  became  a  member  of  a  judicial  tribunal 
organized  to  adjust  the  rival  claims  of  Yanderbilt  and 
Garrison  &  Morgan.  The  result  of  the  deliberations  of 
that  body  was,  that  Yanderbilt  was  indebted  to  the  Rivas- 
Walker  government  to  the  amount  of  one  half  million  of 
dollars.  Pending  the  decision,  were  fought  the  memora- 
ble battles  of  Rivas,  Massaya  and  Granada,  in  each  of  which 
Col.  Kewen  took  an  active  part  as  aid  to  Gen,  Walker. 
Though  disapproving  the  measure,  Col.  Kewen  was  in- 
structed to  take  possession  of  the  steamers  belonging  to 
Commodore  Yanderbilt,  plying  on  Lake  Nicaragua.    That 


EDWARD   J.    C.    KEWEN.  345 

arbitrary  and  impolitic  act,  in  which  he  was  made  the  im- 
willing  agent,  resulted  in  the  disastrous  consequences  that 
he  predicted  to  his  superior.  It  drove  the  powerful  cap- 
italist to  collide  with  the  authorities  of  Costa  Rica,  and 
eventually  caused  the  ruin  of  the  Walker  dynasty. 

The  Colonel  was  now  dispatched  upon  an  embassy  to 
the  Southern  States  of  our  Union  for  additional  means 
and  forces.  Establishing  his  head  quarters  at  Augusta, 
Georgia,  he  soon  succeeded  in  rallying  about  him  a  force 
of  eight  hundred  men,  completely  equipped  with  ample 
supplies  of  provisions.  The  enthusiasm  with  which  he 
was  greeted  and  the  ready  response  made  to  his  persuas- 
ive appeals,  are  part  of  the  history  of  our  country.  He 
had  just  negotiated  with  his  former  friends.  Garrison  & 
Morgan,  the  conveyance  to  their  destination  of  his  forces 
and  implements,  when  the  news  reached  him  of  the  cap- 
ture of  Walker  by  Com.  Paulding,  under  instructions  from 
Washington.  And  so  terminated  the  Rivas- Walker  gov- 
ernment, and  with  it  were  dashed  the  hopes  of  its  most 
efficient  and  brilliant  supporter. 

In  December,  1857,  the  Colonel  returned  to  San  Fran- 
cisco, and  in  January  of  the  succeeding  year  became  a  citi- 
zen of  Los  Angeles,  where  he  has  since  resided.  In  his  new 
abode  the  people  have  once  elected  him  to  the  office  of 
District  Attorney,  and  have  twice  dispatched  him  to  the 
lower  branch  of  our  State  Legislature.  In  the  Presiden- 
tial campaign  of  1868,  he  was  complimented  with  the  high- 
est number  of  votes  as  an  elector  on  the  Democratic 
ticket. 

We  have  thus  sketched  in  brief  the  leading  incidents 
in  the  life  of  one  of  our  most  prominent  citizens.  Per- 
haps no  man  is  so  thoroughly  known  within  our  State 
limits  as  Col.  E.  J.  C.  Kewen.  Of  manners  peculiarly 
genial,  and  a  temperament  ardent,  enthusiastic  and  rest- 
less, and  impulses  generous  and  noble,  and  a  tested  cour- 
age more  often  mettlesome  than  discreet;  charitable  to 
profusion,  he  is  essentially  the  finest  type  of  his  combined 
Celtic  and  Mississippi  origin.  Such  men  often  provoke 
enmities,  but  only  to  melt  into  enduring  friendships. 

His  oratorical  abilities,  so  eminently  peculiar,  have 


346  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OP   THE   PACIFIC. 

often  been  condemned  by  those  most  fascinated  by  tbeir 
display.  Criticism  has  always  been  launched  at  eccen- 
tricity. The  scholar,  while  he  wonders,  condemns  the 
strange  affluence  of  diction  that  floats  before  him  in  such 
luxuriant  profusion.  Seldom  before  did  man  have  such 
command  of  language.  It  is  as  exuberant  as  the  month- 
ly growth  of  the  tropics — as  gushing  as  the  warble  of  the 
wild  bird.  Under  proper  control,  and  with  the  woof  of  log- 
ic, it  is  the  richest  gift  of  intelligence.  Those  that  heard  the 
Colonel  ten  years  ago,  and  wondered  at  and  deplored  this 
wild  luxuriance,  will  now  admire  how  he  has  subjected 
this  verbal  wealth  to  logical  control.  Had  Colonel  Kew- 
en  confined  himself,  without  political  and  other  deviation, 
to  his  profession,  there  is  no  doubt  he  would  have  attained 
in  it  the  rarest  eminence.  He  possesses  strong  reasoning 
abilities.  He  will  yet,  if  his  life  be  spared,  and  his  am- 
bition so  lead  him,  occupy  prominent  positions  in  the 
councils  of  our  country.  He  has  not  reached  the  full 
fruition  of  his  powers.  He  has  a  reputation  unequalled 
upon  our  coast  as  an  advocate  and  a  public  declaimer. 
The  storms  of  his  life  are  over.  Practising  his  profession, 
at  Los  Angeles,  and  surrounded,  at  his  beautiful  home  at 
Lake  Vineyard  by  his  accomplished  wife  and  his  little 
ones,  he  is  ever  found  the  amiable  and  polished  and  hos- 
pitable gentleman. 


#mti0tt  %  §.  §.  §.  ^mm^ 

Delivered  before  the  Society  of  California  Pioneers, 
San  Francisco,  Sept.  9th,  1854. 

3fr.  President  and  Gentlemen  of  the  Society  of  California  Pioneers  : 

Antiquity  comes  to  us  revealed  through  the  marvelous  but  fas- 
cinating illuminations  of  tradition  and  fable.  We  look  back  to  the 
classic  period  of  the  reign  of  Olympian  deities  as  to  a  dream  of  en- 
chantment, or  a  vision  of  romance,  The  achievements  of  men  and 
heroes  under  the  auspicious  protection  of  favoring  gods,  have  elic- 
ited the  admiration,  invoked  the  envy,  and  challenged  the  emula- 


EDWARD    J.    C.    KEWEN.  347 

tion  of  the  heatlien  world.  The  establisment  of  vast  empires  and 
the  foundation  of  mighty  cities  are  also  among  the  beatific  visions  of 
the  fabulous  ages.  Imagination  reverts  to  those  periods  of  magnifi- 
cent progress,  and  while  it  revels  in  bacchanalian  wantonness  amid 
the  attractive  recollections  of  the  past,  the  mind  becomes  amazed, 
and  confidence  is  startled  by  the  suggestions  of  pagan  incredulity. 
The  infant  days  of  the  world  are  indeed  regarded  with  peculiar 
feeling.  All  that  is  bright  and  glowing,  all  that  is  enchanting  and 
beautiful,  and  all  that  is  miraculous,  we  have  been  accustomed  to 
associate  with  the  earlier  records  of  mankind.  The  charm  of  in- 
fatuation lingers  around  the  story  of  Ulysses  and  the  Trojan  settle- 
ment under  the  blue  skies  of  Italy,  and  delightful  are  the  recollections 
recurring  to  the  period  when  Ilion  resisted  the  shock  of  Agamem- 
non's arms,  and  distant  Colchis  became  the  destination  of  the 
freighted  Argos. 

In  our  own  country,  and  in  our  own  history,  too,  can  we  look 
back  as  to  a  classic  era.  The  strange  but  eventful  history  of  Fer- 
nando de  Soto,  the  marvelous  and  ambitious  projects  of  Juan  Ponce 
de  Leon,  the  fascinating  story  of  Pocahontas,  and  the  singular  vi- 
cissitudes in  the  fortunes  of  Raleigh,  seem  but  the  embellishments 
of  fancy,  the  dreams  of  fiction,  the  glowing  colorings  and  splendid 
creations  of  modern  romance.  Around  them,  as  around  the  funeral 
games  of  Patroclus  and  Anchises ;  around  them  as  around  the  allure- 
ments of  Calypso  and  the  fascinations  of  Armida ;  gathers  the  fabu- 
lousness of  antiquity. 

But  brighter  than  the  felicitous  visions  of  the  Greek,  more  mag- 
nificent than  the  fancies  of  the  Roman,  more  glorious  than  the 
dreams  of  the  bards  of  Castile,  and  more  thrilling  than  the  early 
marvels  of  American  history,  is  the  strange,  the  electrifying  truth 
— outsplendoring  romance — of  the  acquisition,  the  growth  and 
greatness  of  the  golden  Dorado  of  the  Pacific.  Antiquity  evolves 
from  its  mysterious  realms  no  parallel,  tradition  stands  dumb,  and 
fable  is  confounded  by  the  reality  of  the  nineteenth  century. 

The  Ninth  day  of  September,  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty,  dawn- 
ed upon  the  nativity  of  California  and  witnessed  its  baptism  into 
the  sisterhood  of  republics. 

The  hibernation  and  slumber  of  ages  had  kept  it  a  sealed  mys- 
tery to  the  universe.  Among  the  almost  forgotten  explorations  of 
adventurous  navigators,  we  had  caught  an  indistinct  idea  of  a  sterile 
country,  sullenly  ranging  itself  along  the  eastern  front  of  the  Pa- 
cific. Like  the  barrenness  of  El  Ghor,  which  extended  from  the 
Elanitic  Gulf  to  the  Dead  Sea,  its  sterility  was  imagined  to  reach 
from  Humboldt  Bay  to  the  Gila.  It  slept  under  the  seeming  curse 
of  desolation  in  the  inglorious  repose  of  careless  and  unheeding 
centui'ies.  "Wild  beasts  upon  its  moujitains,  browsing  herds  in  its 
valleys,  the  sullen  whoop  of  the  Aboriginal,  and  trained  exploits 
with  the  lasso,  were  its  only  evidences  of  vitality.  Its  hills  were 
not,  even  in  superstitious  imagination,  the  habitations  of  oreads, 
nor  its  fountains  the  abodes  of  nymphs,  nor  its  btreams,  nor  plains, 
nor  mountains,  the  haunts  of  any  of  the  genii  of  fable. 


o45  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

It  was  a  country  destitute  of  romantic  associations,  destitute  of 
traditional  fame,  destitute  of  the  throbbing  arteries  of  enterprise 
and  ambition,  and  impoverished  of  all  that  ennobles,  all  that  dig- 
nifies, all  that  makes  chaste  and  adorns  society  and  man.  Buried  in 
its  wild  and  distant  seclusion,  immovable  and  passionless  as  the 
Egyptian  Sphynx,  like  it,  it  seemed  destined  to  "stare  right  on, 
with  calm,  eternal  eyes,"  the  monument  of  irreclaimable  sterility 
and  barbarism. 

How  marvelous  the  mutations  of  a  few  years!  In  the  whole 
range  of  philosophy  there  is  no  subject  for  contemplation  more  sub- 
lime, in  history  nothing  more  wonderful,  nothing  as  startling, 
nothing  as  analogous.  The  recesses  of  its  occlusion  were  invaded  by 
a  spirit,  which  at  once,  as  if  by  magic,  dispelled  the  enveloping 
darkness  of  ages,  disturbed  the  dreamless  sleep  of  centuries,  and 
penetrating  the  haunts  of  superstition  and  oppression,  dissipated 
and  destroyed  them,  as  fluids  glide  into  the  fissures  of  rocks,  and 
expanding  by  congelation  heave  them  from  their  foundations  or 
rend  them  into  atoms. 

The  illustrations  of  that  spirit  are  around  us  to-day.  They  are 
visible  in  every  object  we  see,  they  are  incorporated  in  every  sound 
we  hear.  It  is  the  spirit  of  American  progress,  the  spirit  of  Ameri- 
can freedom. 

Before  the  sanguinary  war  which  rescued  California  from  the 
despotism  of  degenerate  Mexico,  before  the  ratification  of  the  trea- 
ty of  Queretaro,  the  pioneer  from  the  valley  of  the  Mississippi  had 
stood  upon  the  summit  of  the  mountain  of  rocks,  had  traversed  the 
burning  deserts  of  Pah-Utah,  had  braved  the  dangers  of  the  Sier- 
ras, and  penetrated  the  forests  of  the  Occident.  Then  it  was  that 
the  vagrant  fancy  of  the  poet  might  have  been  deemed  the  inspira- 
tion of  prophecy : 

**A  star  is  trembling  on  the  horizon's  verge  : 
That  star  shall  glow  and  broaden  on  the  night 
Until  it  hangs  divine  and  beautiful 
In  the  proud  zenith." 

War  was  not  necessary  to  the  attainment  of  this  land  of  gold. 
Treaties  might  have  facilitated  but  could  not  have  prevented  its  ac- 
quisition. The  foot  of  the  Anglo  Saxon  had  already  pressed  the 
soil  which,  like  the  Hebrew  Chieftain  shorn  of  his  locks,  reposed 
in  sensuality  and  despotism,  and  destiny  decreed  what  human  pow- 
er was  impotent  to  avert.  The  explorations  of  the  Pioneer  devel- 
oped the  magnitude  of  the  country,  the  fertility  of  its  soil,  the 
fecundity  of  its  productions,  the  nature  and  abundance  of  its  re- 
sources. A  new  light  darted  on  the  American  mind,  a  new  impulse 
was  given  to  American  enterprise,  and  the  genius  of  progress  ex- 
panded its  vision  westward  to  the  Pacific.  The  land  that  had  been 
forgotten  for  ages,  the  land  that  was  despised  of  nations,  the  land 
that  was  fibreless,  and  soulless,  and  baiTen  in  histoiy,  became  the 
alluring  goal  of  adventure,  the  fascinating  destination  of  ambition. 

Like  the  South  American  hunter  who,  carelessly  plucking  a  root 


EDWARD   J.    C.    KEWEN.  349 

from  the  earth,  discovered  beneath  a  glittering  mine  of  untold 
wealth,  the  Pacific  adventurer,  toiling  in  the  channel  of  an  un- 
promising stream,  chanced  upon  a  nugget  of  sparkling  gold,  in 
which  was  destined  the  revelation  of  exhaustless  treasures,  in  which 
had  reposed  the  secret  of  nearly  two  thousand  years,  and  from 
which  was  evolved  the  flattering  promise  of  unparalleled  greatness. 
At  once  a  mighty  throng  of  pilgrims  turned  their  faces  towards  the 
setting  sun,  and  gazed  upon  that  declining  luminary  as  resting  up- 
on the  Mecca  of  their  worship.  The  land  that  had  slept  under  the 
shadow  of  barbarian  oppression  had  become  resplendent  with  the 
light  of  promise,  brilliant  with  the  hope  of  freedom,  and  radiant 
with  the  destinies  of  humanity.  Over  barren  plains  and  scorching 
saharas,  over  sterile  hills,  through  valleys  fragrant  with  flowers  and 
embosoming  refreshing  streams,  along  the  defiles  of  rugged  moun- 
tains, and  over  the  summits  of  snow-capped  Sierras,  the  tide  of  emi- 
gration incessantly  flowed.  The  wave  of  population  fertilized  the 
neglected  shore  of  the  Pacific,  and  it  now  teems  with  populous  life, 
with  *'fair  women  and  brave  men,"  with  all  the  emblems  of  great- 
ness, with  all  the  insignia  of  permanent  prosperity. 

How  difterent,  too,  the  aspects  of  nature  from  the  blank  sterility 
with  which  it  was  invested  by  our  primitive  imaginations. 

In  the  history  of  Greece,  we  are  enchanted  with  the  descriptions 
of  consecrated  groves;  we  read  with  rapture  of  azure  mountains,  of 
flowing  plains,  of  golden  isles,  and  sunny  fountains;  but  beneath 
this  western  sky  are  revealed  as  splendid  attributes  of  nature  as  ev- 
er attracted  the  eye  of  the  Grecian  in  the  palmiest  period  of  his 
country's  glory.  Ionia  never  boasted  of  fairer  skies,  Italy  never 
rejoiced  in  a  firmament  more  deeply  blue,  France  never  produced 
the  luscious  grape  in  more  luxuriance,  and  never  exhibited  greener 
fields  or  more  exuberant  gardens;  Germany  never  revealed  sublimer 
forests,  and  Switzerland  grander  mountains,  nor  more  romantic 
scenery  than  meets  the  gaze  of  the  wanderer  on  the  Pacific  slope. 
But  lovelier  than  the  cerulean  of  its  skies,  more  to  be  prized  than 
the  estuaries  of  its  coast,  sublimer  than  the  undulations  of  its  sur- 
face, greater  than  the  exuberance  of  its  products,  more  magnificent 
than  the  sublimity  of  its  mountains,  the  placidity  of  its  lakes,  the 
abruptness  and  grandeur  of  its  scenery,  is  the  symmetrical  edifice 
of  its  republican  construction.  Virtue  and  industry  form  the  basis 
of  its  morality,  shrewdness,  wisdom  and  sagacity  the  distinguishing 
features  of  its  mind,  simplicity  the  proof  of  social  excellence,  and 
progress  the  aim  and  end  of  its  political  aspirations. 

A  few  years  have  wrought  indeed  a  wondrous  change  in  this  land 
of  gold.  The  past  is  like  a  dream,  and  the  present  seems  almost 
the  illusion  of  enchantment.  The  lamp  of  Aladdin  was  not  more 
efficacious  in  the  sudden  erection  of  gorgeous  palaces,  than  has 
been  the  magic  of  human  industry  in  creating  out  of  shapeless 
sites  palatial  cities,  and  from  reluctant  soils  flowering  fields  and 
exuberant  gardens.  Antiquity  has  been  revived  in  more  than  pris- 
tine splendor.  Its  buried  cities,  with  their  temples  far-reaching  to- 
wards Heaven,  with  their  magnificent  pillars,    their  ornamental 


350  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

columns,  their  chariots  speeding  through  busy  thoroughfares  with 
steeds  fiery  as  those  of  Diomedes;  their  fountains  playing  and 
sparkling  in  the  sun-light,  and  all  their  glittering  wealth  of  costly 
luxuries  and  elegant  refinements,  have  been  disinterred  and  gor- 
geomjly  reproduced  in  this  auriferous  land.  The  spirit  of  necro- 
mancy has  been  abroad,  and  in  obedience  to  its  conjurations, 
mountains  have  been  leveled,  valleys  have  been  unlifted,  streams 
have  been  diverted  from  their  channels,  forests  metamorphosed  in- 
to cities,  plains  compelled  to  groan  under  the  weight  of  vegetation, 
and  the  wilderness  made  to  blossom  as  a  rose,  and  dispense  fra- 
grance as  a  garden.  Sanctuaries  for  worship,  shrines  for  holy 
chalices,  temples  for  learning,  marts  for  commerce,  and  lists  for  the 
tourney  of  enterprise  and  ambition,  are  among,  too,  the  gorgeous 
creations  and  glorious  fruitage  of  the  magical  incantation. 

Such  is  the  unornamented  picture  of  California  to-day.  The 
Poet  was  prophetic.  The  "star  that  trembled  on  the  horizon's 
verge"  has  *' glowed  and  broadened  on  the  night,"  and  "hangs  di- 
vine and  beautiful  in  the  proud  zenith,''  an  illumination  to  the 
world,  and  a  planet  of  hope  to  mankind.  It  is  the  Bethlehemic  star 
of  promise  to  the  involuntary  servitors  of  despotism,  under  the  re- 
splendent light  of  which  the  gloomy  night  of  absolute  sovereignty 
will  be  dissipated,  and  bowed  heads  will  be  uplifted,  and  manacled 
limbs  will  be  unloosened,  and  broken  hearts  will  be  healed  in  the 
glorious  and  exulting  consciousness  of  disenthralment. 

The  splendid  consummation  of  the  acquisition  of  California  was 
not  the  result  of  accident.  It  was  the  effect  of  the  slow,  steady, 
but  certain  operation  of  a  principle  coeval  with  time  and  ever  in- 
stinct with  vitality.  It  was  this  principle  which  six  hundred  years 
ago,  impelled  our  ancestors  to  ol3tain  from  King  John,  at  Eunny- 
mede,  a  charter  of  liberties.  It  was  this  principle  which  in  the 
revolution  of  1688,  wrested  from  the  throne  the  concession  of  a 
declaration  of  rights  in  the  people.  It  was  this  principle  which  in- 
spired the  Genoese  adventurer  with  the  belief  of  the  existence  of  a 
new  continent.  From  the  time  when,  concealed  from  observation 
under  the  canopy  of  night,  he  kept  unremitting  vigil,  and  with 
faint  heart  and  despairing  hope  ranged  his  anxious  eye  along  the 
dusky  horizon  in  search  even  of  the  vaguest  indications  of  land, 
when  the  gun  from  the  Pinta  gave  the  joyous  signal  of  the  discove- 
ry of  the  New  "World,  until  now,  this  principle  has  been  steadily 
working,  and  gradually  but  inevitably  consummating  its  magnifi- 
cent mission.  Its  illustration  was  seen  and  its  influence  felt  in  the 
expedition  of  the  Mayflower.  It  was  visible  in  the  concerted  action 
of  the  American  colonies,  in  the  solemn  proclamation  of  sovereign- 
ty in  the  people,  in  the  successful  struggle  to  maintain  that  declar- 
ation, in  the  subsequent  formation  of  thirteen  separate  independ- 
encies into  a  confederated  government,  and  in  all  the  successive 
extensions  to  the  territorial  dominion  of  our  wide  and  expanding 
republic. 

It  is  the  grand,  the  sublime,  the  regenerating  principle  of  de- 
mocracy. 


EDWARD   J.    C.    KEWEN.  351 

The  immaculateness  of  that  principle  has  not  been  without  its 
infidels  and  its  scoffers.  We  have  been  told  that  the  plain,  the  sol- 
id and  quiet  mass  of  the  people  can  never  be  benefited  by  an  extend- 
ed government.  "We  have  been  pointed  to  the  results  of  National 
cupidity,  as  giving  little  of  glory  or  dominion  to  the  architects,  the 
builders  and  preservers  of  a  country.  "We  have  been  reminded  that 
only  the  senators,  the  consuls  and  emperors  of  the  buried  nations 
of  the  past  have  reaped  the  harvest  of  splendor  enriched  with  the 
people's  blood.  "We  are  not  blind  to  the  truths,  nor  unheedful  of 
the  admonitions  of  history.  "We  know  that  the  dependency  of  Me- 
dea was  made  by  Cyrus  the  head  of  a  magnificent  empire,  and  that 
as  the  military  power  was  strengthened,  the  people  of  Persia  sank 
to  the  degraded  level  of  the  subjugated  nations.  Carthage  too,  am- 
bitious of  sovereignty,  lengthened  her  sway  until  the  cord  of  domin- 
ion was  rent  in  fragments.  The  spirit  of  constitutional  freedom 
was  suffered  to  decay,  and  its  people  became  a  part  of  the  com- 
mon degradation  that  fell  upon  the  shattered  provinces,  owing  to 
the  fresh-risen  sway  of  the  sword.  In  later  times,  the  invincible 
Mahommed  and  his  successors  traversed  vast  regions  and  establish- 
ed splendid  governments,  but  Arabia  shrank  back  again  into  pover- 
ty and  barbarism.  The  same  result  followed  the  Venetian  and 
Genoese  conquests  in  the  Levant.  Turkey  conquered,  and  her  tur- 
baned  subjects  became  a  nation  of  slaves.  The  acquisitions  of 
Spain  under  Charles  the  Fifth  converted  the  Castilian  court  into  an 
absolute  tjTanny.  Portugal,  whose  dominions  once  almost  girded 
the  earth,  fell,  crushed  by  k  kindred  destiny,  and  wherever  the  spir- 
it of  conquest  or  territorial  aggrandizement  has  not  been  governed 
by  a  saving  and  qualifying  principle,  the  government  has  strength- 
ened into  despotism,  and  the  people  have  been  debased  into 
servitude. 

The  beautiful  fabric  of  American  government  remains  not  only 
unimpaired  by  territorial  acqusitions  and  the  magnificence  of  do- 
minion, but  stands  more  majestic  from  each  additional  gem  of  its 
glistening  diadem  of  sovereignty,  and  more  invincible  from  its  ac- 
cumulated sublimities.  Bursting  into  existence  through  the  devel- 
opment of  an  imperishable  principle,  growing,  spreading,  magnifying 
into  colossal  greatness  and  palatial  beauty  under  its  vivifying  influ- 
ence, it  is  destined,  under  the  auspices  of  the  same  great  immuta- 
ble principle,  to  refute  forever  the  dogma  of  the  skeptic,  and  the 
insane  predictions  of  political  vaticinators.  It  will  stand  the  monu- 
ment of  ancestral  wisdom — adamantine  and  eternal  as  the  pyramids 
of  antiquity — magnificent  in  design,  glorious  in  consummation,  bril- 
liant in  progress,  colossal  in  grandeur,  luxuriant  in  mental  develop- 
ment, and  breathing  refinements  which,  like  the  pendulating  flower 
gardens  of  oriental  sumptuousness,  will  diffuse  a  fragrance  that  will 
float  forever  in  the  atmosphere  of  histoiy.  Experience  concedes, 
Truth  acknowledges,  and  Philosophy  as  she  traces  upon  the  horo- 
scope of  nations  the  shadowy  presages  of  their  destiny,  admits  this 
ultimate  result  to  be  the  vision  of  reality  and  not  the  pleasing 
dream  of  enthusiasm. 


352  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

The  latest  and  most  important  development  of  the  principle  of 
Bepubliean  progress,  is  the  incorporation  of  the  Pacific  coast  into 
the  fraternity  of  free  governments.  Anterior  to  its  acquisition,  the 
history  of  California  was  a  stupendous  blank,  which,  like  the 
sphynx  upon  the  Egyptian  sands,  gave  no  response  to  the  question- 
ings of  the  curious,  and  revealed  nothing  for  the  enlightenment  of 
mankind.  To-day,  it  is  a  compendium  of  all  that  is  marvelous  in 
history,  all  that  is  beautiful  in  romance,  and  all  that  is  miraculous 
in  reality. 

What  shall  be  its  future? 

We  have  already  said  that  the  physical  aspect  and  properties  of 
the  country  are  all  that  the  most  exacting  imagination  could  desire. 
It  presents  a  brilliant  and  enchanting  prospect.  It  is  unsurpassed 
in  the  loveliness  of  its  landscapes.  It  is  unsurpassed  in  the 
sublimity  of  its  crowded  assemblages  of  hills  and  valleys.  It  is 
unsurpassed  in  the  magnitude  of  its  trees,  beneath  the  umbrageous 
dome  of  whose  foliage  a  Sybarite  might  repose  in  coveted  luxuri- 
ousness.  It  is  unsurpassed  in  the  beauty  of  its  flowers,  diffusing 
aromatic  odors  and  freighting  the  air  with  delicious  fragrance.  It 
is  unsurpassed  in  the  fantastic  groupings  of  its  mountains,  exuber- 
ant with  verdure,  beneath  which  lie  buried  the  untold  treasures  of 
past  and  prospective  ages. 

It  is  not,  however,  its  physical  properties  alone,  which  consti- 
tute a  state.  Nor  is  it  magnificent  cities,  with  their  adornments  of 
temples,  and  columns,  and  majestic  shrines,  and  glittering  man- 
sions, and  winged  palaces  of  the  ocean.  It  is  men — noble,  high- 
minded  men,  governed  by  principle,  controlled  by  patriotism,  by 
high  resolves,  and  a  lofty  and  unsullied  ambition,  which  constitute 
a  prosperous  commonwealth.  It  requires  something  more  too,  than 
the  manual  capacity  to  build  magnificent  structures,  to  subdue  for- 
ests and  mountains,  to  reclaim  morasses,  to  cultivate  fields,  and  to 
guide  to  their  destinations  the  peerles  clippers  of  our  bays.  The 
theory  of  our  government  rests  on  the  solid  substratum  of  mind;  its 
prosperity  depends  on  the  growth  of  its  intellect,  on  the  sublimity 
of  the  virtues  and  the  universality  of  the  intelligence  of  its  people. 

"Life's  more  than  the  quick  round  of  blood — 

It  is  a  great  spirit  and  a  busy  heart." 
"We  live  in  deeds,  not  years  ;  in  thoughts,  not  breaths  ; 

In  feelings,  not  in  figures  on  a  dial. 

We  should  count  time  by  heart-throbs.    He  most  lives 

Who  thinks  most — feels  the  noblest — acts  the  best." 

As  Americans,  we  can  proudly  and  exultingly  point  to  a  galaxy 
of  great  names,  whose  genius  has  lit  up  fires  of  thought,  the  illumi- 
nations of  which  have  not  been  limited  to  our  own  borders,  but 
have  extended  across  the  broad  expanse  of  ocean,  and  shone  with 
competing  lustre  upon  the  favorite  shrines  of  trans-Atlantic  intel- 
lect. Genius  of  every  land,  in  every  form  of  development,  has 
hailed  and  recognized  in  the  western  hemisphere  its  similitude,  its 
immortal  counterpart.  The  eloquence  which  has  conferred  an  im- 
mortality on  Westminster,  has  resounded  with  equal  celebrity  with- 


EDWARD   J.    C.    KEWEN.  353 

in  the  walls  of  the  American  Capitol.  The  bursts  of  inspired 
oratory  which  have  swayed  the  mind  and  heart  of  France,  as  the 
moon  governs  the  currents  and  tides  of  the<>cean,  have  also,  in  our 
land,  consecrated  to  fame  names  as  brilliant  as  ever  went  down  the 
tide  of  time  on  the  historic  page.  It  matters  not,  whether  in  Sci- 
ence, or  Philosophy,  in  Arts  or  in  Literatm-e,  the  mind  of  America 
has  grappled  with  the  great  intellects  of  the  world,  and  the  conflict 
has  served  to  eternize  its  renown.  The  melodies  exuberant  with 
poetic  images,  inspired  by  the  golden  sunsets  of  Italy ;  the  songs 
like  those  of  the  Teon  Poet,  so  full  of  life,  of  sprightliness  and 
joy,  which  receive  their  colorings  from  the  vine-clad  gardens  of 
beautiful  France ;  the  sweet  verses  that  sounded  a  sweeter  music 
tJian  the  "murmurs  of  the  living  brooks"  under  the  inspired  mins- 
trelsy of  the  Bard  of  Rydal  Mount,  have  been  re-created  in  as  ad- 
mirable forms,  and  with  the  same  weird  powers  of  enchantment 
beneath  our  own  gorgeous  skies,  so  full  of  inspiring  beauty  and 
magnificence.  America  boasts  indeed  no  Elizabethan  Age  of  Lit- 
erature, but  the  foundations  of  her  literary  fame  are  as  fixed  as  the 
eternal  gi-anite  of  her  mountains,  and  its  superstructure  and  its 
spires  pointing  hopeftdly  towards  Heaven  reflect  the  glory  of  its 
ever-shining  stars. 

The  physical  attributes  of  our  Republic  favor  the  loftiest  devel- 
opments of  mind.  There  is  scarcely  anything  in  nature  that  exceeds 
the  gTandeur  of  American  scenery.  In  the  sublimity  of  its  aspects, 
in  the  solemn  heights  of  its  mountains,  in  the  verdure  of  its  plains, 
in  the  beauty  of  its  forests,  in  the  diversities  of  its  climate,  the 
freshness  of  its  fountains,  the  sparkling  flow  of  its  streamlets,  and 
in  the  beautifully  gliding  currents  of  its  rivers,  there  is  inspiration 
as  deep  and  fervid  as  ever  visited  the  wanderer  upon  Parnassian 
heights,  or  loiterer  lingering  with  ecstatic  vision  around  the  Castal- 
ian  fountain.  The  magnificent  properties  of  the  physical  world 
have  stimulated  the  pride,  the  faith,  the  hope  and  ambition  of 
American  intellect.  It  has  done  much,  but  there  is  yet  infinitely 
more  to  accomplish.  The  field  has  only  been  entered,  not  explored 
The  mountains  continue  to  loom  up  in  solemn  grandeur,  with  their 
summits  like  that  of  Tabor,  crowned  with  an  eternal  sun,  or  conceal- 
ed in  snow,  and  mist  and  cloud.  The  valleys  are  still  emerald  with 
verdure.  The  plains  sparkle  with  the  wealth  and  effuse  the  aroma 
of  blooming  flowers.  The  brooks  flow  by  in  babbling  sweetness. 
The  rivulet  plays  in  fantastic  eddies  and  laughingly  leaps  onward  in 
its  course.  The  majestic  rivers  puis  ae  their  sinuous  windings,  and 
each  and  every  object  in  nature  invites  enterprise,  and  freshness, 
and  spirit  in  the  domain  of  liigh  thought,  which  shall  revive  a  litera- 
ture nobler  than  that  which  flourished  in  the  golden  age  of  Augus- 
tus, and  more  brilliant  than  shone  on  England's  fame  from  the 
illustrious  precincts  of  Twickenham,  Keswick  and  Newstead  Abbey. 

The  accession  of  California  to  our  government  enlarges  the 
sphere  of  productive  thought — extends  the  already  expansive  field 
of  literary  enterprise.  Its  mountains  inlaid  with  gold,  its  canons 
with  precious  gems,  its  placers  brilliant  with  ores  of  priceless  value, 

23 


354  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

its  plains  sparkling  with  auriferous  sands,  its  rivers  imbeddiTig  the 
costliest  minerals,  its  valleys  fertile  with  the  wonderful  productions 
of  the  vegetable  kingdom,  and  its  bays  floating  on  their  bosoms  the 
argosies  of  an  unrivaled  commerce,  all  act  as  incentives  to  the  cul- 
tivation of  mind,  and  invoke  the  loftiest  thoughts  and  noblest  im- 
pulses of  the  patriotic  soul. 

But  alas  !  the  idol  of  California  worship  has  been  a  lifeless,  tune- 
less, Plutonian  statue.  There  has  been  exhibited  little  adoration  of 
the  Deities  which  preside  over  the  destinies  of  Literature,  Science 
and  Philosophy.  The  lust  of  gain,  and  not  the  thirst  of  the  immor- 
tal spirit  that  pants  after  high  thoughts  and  Promethean  inspirations, 
has  been  the  guiding,  governing  and  insatiable  passion  of  the  young- 
est and  fairest  in  the  sisterhood  of  states.  Its  conflicts  have  hith- 
erto resulted  in  sordid  achievements,  and  its  aspirations  have  look- 
ed only  to  the  ignoble  triumphs  of  which  the  accumulation  of  pelf 
is  the  consummation  and  the  goal.  No  lofty  enthusiasm  has  yet 
awakened  into  existence  an  order  of  intellectual  Palestrae,  who,  with 
a  constancy  as  enduring  as  martyr's  faith,  would  drink  draughts  of 
perennial  freshness  from  the  classic  fountains  of  the  Past,  and  re- 
vive by  their  learning,  their  wisdom,  and  their  genius,  the  glory  and 
renown  of  the  ancient  Academe, 

It  is  a  sad  reflection  that  the  only  lesson  our  people  have  studied 
with  earnestness  and  practiced  with  assiduity,  is  lago's  advice  to 
Roderigo — "put  money  in  thy  purse." 

The  first  flush  and  fever  of  the  excitement  has  passed  away.  The 
madness  that  engrossed  the  energies,  and  absorbed  the  soul,  has 
lost  something  of  its  direful  paroxysm.  The  infatuation,  which 
seized  the  heart  and  subsidized  the  brain,  is  relaxing  its  tyrannous 
hold,  and  glimpses  of  returning  reason  are  beginning  to  be  revealed. 
The  dawn  of  a  better  day  is  approaching.  Over  the  darkness  of  the 
prevailing  despotism  a  pale  star  trembles  on  the  brow  of  the  awak- 
ening morn.  It  is  the  planet  which  heralds  the  rising  and  culmi- 
nation of  the  sun  of  Literature.  While  the  busy  hum  of  Plutonian 
worship  is  sounding  along  the  thoroughfares,  in  the  mart,  and  else- 
where, where  the  spirits  of  avarice  "most  do  congregate,''  there  are 
some  who,  shunning  the  crowd  of  mammon  idolaters,  with  patient 
vigil  and  unwearying  toil,  are  planting  the  seeds  of  thought,  which 
will  germinate  and  blossom,  and  bring  forth  fruit  more  precious 
than  the  golde^i  apple  of  the  Hesperides — fruit  delectable  to  the 
intellectual  taste  of  man,  and  worthy  the  refection  of  the  Gods. 

"Let  me  make  the  songs  of  a  people  and  you  may  make  their 
laws,"  was  the  cunning  and  sagacious  aphorism  of  Fletcher,  of  Sal- 
toune.  The  power  of  literature  represents  indeed  the  potent  virtue 
of  the  minstrelsy  of  Adphion — the  moral  efficacy  of  the  lyrics  of  Or- 
pheus. By  a  single  poem  of  his  own  the  wise  Solon  of  Greece  in- 
fused that  spirit  into  Athenians  before  which  Salamis  was  reduced 
to  shapeless  ruin  and  consigned  to  inscrutable  oblivion.  The  hymns 
and  invocations  of  ancient  bards,  Hesiod  with  his  theogony,  and  the 
blind  old  harper  of  Scio  with  his  Illiad,  his  Odyssey  and  his  songs, 
created  laws,  systematised  religions,  gave  animation  to  symbols, 


EDWARD   J-    C.    KEWEN,  355 

personality  to  immaterial  substances,  and  consciousness  to  the  in- 
visible attributes  of  nature.  Once  a  caliph  of  Persia  pointed  to  his 
scimitar  and  his  bands  of  trained  seryitors  as  the  only  legitimate 
arbiters  of  disputed  succession.  "This,"  said  he  " is  my  pedigree 
and  these  its  supporters  and  its  proofs. "  A  free  government  points 
alone  to  the  mind  and  morality  of  its  sons  as  the  only  equitable 
foundation  of  public  or  private  sovereignty.  The  intellectual  and 
moral  spirit  of  our  government  will  abide  upon  the  earth  as  the  re- 
deeming spirit  of  after  times,  and  v^ill  be  transmitted  from  one 
generation  to  another  like  the  inextinguishable  fire  of  the  Grecian 
temples,  till  all  the  nations  are  filled  with  its  meridian-like  resplen- 
dence. 

This  is  not  the  Utopian  vagary  of  fancy.  In  the  consummation 
of  this  magnificent  destiny  California  will  be  pre-eminently  instru- 
mental. The  splendid  reality  of  free  government  has  already  been 
demonstrated  by  the  example  of  America,  and  an  impulse  given  to 
its  eternal  principle  of  regeneration  which  has  rescued  the  millions 
of  France  from  the  yoke  of  feudalism,  which  has  given'  to  unhappy 
Ireland  the  relief  of  partial  emancipation,  which  has  agitated  Eng- 
land with  the  purifying  fires  of  revolution,  and  which  has  involved 
the  whole  of  Europe  in  convulsions  for  the  fruition  of  republican 
happiness.  The  admission  of  California  has  brought  us  in  social 
and  commercial  contact  with  nations  whose  centuiy-silent  portals 
are  opening  at  the  magic  of  our  behest,  and  revealing  to  our  acqui- 
sition the  treasures  they  have  so  long  incontinently  concealed. 
Hither  have  flocked  the  emigrant  bands  of  Asia.  Hither  have  sped 
the  Mogul  and  Mongolian.  Hither  the  Malay  of  Sumatra  and  the 
Hindoo  of  the  Ganges.  Hither  have  wandered  the  inhabitants 
from  the  frozen  regions  of  the  Neva  and  the  Baltic,  and  the  turban- 
ed  denizens  from  the  banks  of  the  Bosphorus  and  the  Danube,  and 
hither  are  turned  the  anxious  eye  and  aspiring  hope  of  the  millions 
of  Japan,  of  the  East  Indian  Archipelago,  and  the  islands  of  the 
sea.  This  fantastic  grouping  of  humanity,  this  motley  assemblage 
of  contrary  characters  and  antagonistic  creeds,  gives  the  most  cheer- 
ing promise  of  the  dawn  of  universal  freedom.  Thrown  in  contin- 
ual contact  with  the  votaries  of  republican  enlightenment,  forced  by 
the  necessity  of  their  position  into  a  familiarity  with  the  character  of 
our  people,  our  laws,  our  institutions  and  our  government,  they  be- 
come imbued  with  thoughts,  feelings  and  principles  which  are  trans- 
mitted to  the  homes  of  foi-mer  seclusion,  and  made  the  germs  of  so- 
cial, moral  and  political  emancipation.  This  fusion  of  so  many 
op230site  qualities  into  the  American  alembic  is  the  source  of  more 
legitimate  power  over  the  despotisms  of  earth  and  the  treasures  of 
the  world  than  ever  was  symbolized  to  catholic  faith  by  the  key  or 
the  crown  of  St.  Peter. 

In  olden  times  the  defences  of  imperial  Rome  were  broken  down 
and  desolated  by  the  brutal  horde  of  the  Gothic  conqueror,  and  the 
savage  Attila  brandished  his  gleaming  sword  in  triumph  over  the 
"Eternal  City."  The  last  pale  light  which  glimmered  from  its  capi- 
tol  for  the  renovation  of  man,  was  extinguished  by  the  inundation  of 


356  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OP   THE    PACIFIC. 

barbarian  victors,  and  by  the  dastard  infamy  of  the  degenerate  Ko- 
man.  That  twinkling  illumination  was  revived  in  the  tragedy  of 
Yorktown,  and  from  the  American  capitol  its  rays,  dimly  extending 
over  thirteen  independent  sovereignties,  have  gradually  glowed  and 
broadened  until  the  whole  ocean-bound  continent  basks  in  the  inef- 
fable splendor  of  their  noontide  effulgence.  Eeversing  too,  the 
precedent  of  Boman  degTadation,  its  brightness  preserved  like  a 
vestal  flame,  has  dazzled  the  heathen  in  his  blindness,  has  subdued 
the  ravaging  spirit  of  the  Goth,  has  caused  to  be  mutilated  the 
century-grown  defences  of  superstitious  occlusion,  and  is  permeat- 
ing with  lightning  speed,  and  with  the  efficacy  of  lightning  terrors, 
the  shadowy  dominions  of  the  hoary  despotisms  of  the  Orient.  Glo- 
rious in  prospective  is  the  destiny  of  our  Kepublic. 

But  enough  of  inquiry  of  the  past,  enough  of  speculation  as  to 
the  future  glory  and  dominion  of  America.  The  present  with  its 
train  of  alluring  associations,  demands  our  thoughts  and  exacts  a 
tributary  offering.  I  am  surrounded  by  a  pageant  rivaling  in 
splendor  the  triumphal  celebrations  of  Eome  in  its  pride  of  power, 
and  in  its  haughtiness  of  supremacy.  This  glittering  pageant  is 
more  than  an  empty  parade — more  than  an  idle  exhibition.  It  re- 
presents the  vanguard  of  civilization  and  freedom  on  the  Pacific 
shore.  It  commemorates  the  transplantation  of  Kepublican  princi- 
ples in  the  remote  regions  of  the  Occident.  It  is  composed  of  stout 
hearts  and  sinewy  arms,  of  men  of  brilliant  courage,  adventurous 
daring,  stern  resolves,  intrepid  energy  and  fearless  enterprise — at- 
tributes which  everywhere  distinguish  the  Pioneees  of  EepuiBlican 
Progkess.  It  is  significant  of  the  achievement  of  greater  results 
then  ever  were  contemplated  by  Czar  of  Russia  or  Turkish  Sultan 
as  the  fruit  of  extended  empire.  It  is  a  proud  and  happy  pageant 
of  enlightened  freemen  exulting  in  the  triumph  and  growth  of  the 
ever  vital  and  regenerating  principle  of  democracy. 

It  was  indeed  a  period  of  patriotic  exultation  when  California, 
the  dependency  of  a  degenerate  empire,  was  rescued  from  the 
grasp  of  degrading  sovereignty,  and  with  its  mountains  of  gold, 
and  its  hills  and  its  valleys,  and  its  streams  and  its  rivers,  all  im- 
pregnated with  glittering  wealth,  became  incorporated  into  the  sis- 
terhood of  American  States.  The  pride,  the  glory  and  exultation 
of  the  achievement  belong  to  the  intrepid  explorers  of  the  moun- 
tains, the  pioneers  of  the  desert  and  the  wilderness.  Inspired  by  a 
lofty  courage,  moved  by  a  Providential  inspiration,  and  sustained 
by  an  unfaltering  confidence,  the  pioneer  severed  himself  from  the 
endearing  associations  of  home  and  kindred,  from  native  ties,  from 
tender  memories  of  affection,  from  all  his  cherished  household  gods, 
and  launched  forth  into  an  untrodden  field  of  exploration,  adven- 
ture and  enterprise.  Over  arid  plains  beneath  a  scorching  sun, 
over  valleys  and  hills,  mountains  and  rocks,  and  waterless  wastes 
and  burning  sands,  unawed  by  pestilence,  unterrified  by  menacing 
dangers,  and  fearlessly  combating  the  horrible  spectres  of  want, 
and  hunger  and  destitution,  he  "kept  his  onward  course  towards 
where  the  burning  axle  of  the  chariot  of  day  is  bathed  in  the  cool- 


EDWARD   J.    C.    KEWEN.  357 

ing  waters  of  the  western  ocean.  Despite  the  eminent  ]3eril  which 
environed  his  pathway,  despite  the  toil,  the  heart-sickness,  the 
w^eariness  and  exhaustion,  his  soul  was  steadfast  and  invincible. 
Like  the  Alpine  adventurer  to  whom  "Excelsior ''  was  the  enlivening 
magic  of  recuperation,  the  visions  of  freedom,  and  fame,  and  for- 
tune, were  the  magical  revivers  of  the  exhausted  and  failing  ener- 
gies of  the  dauntless  pioneer. 

At  length,  like  Moses  on  the  summit  of  Pisgah,  he  stands  upon 
the  snowy  heights  of  the  Sierras,  and  his  eyes  sparkle,  his  brain 
reels  with  tumultuous  pleasures,  his  bosom  heaves  with  ecstatic 
emotion,  and  his  noble  soul  expands  with  patriotic  enthusiasm  as 
he  catches  a  glimpse  of  the  far-off  Canaan  of  his  imagination — the 
golden  land  of  jDromise.  More  fortunate  than  the  law-giver  of  Is- 
rael, an  angry  God  has  not  arrested  his  footsteps,  nor  doomed  him 
to  perish,  in  view  of  the  alliu'ing  goal  of  his  ambition.  With  fresh 
courage  and  revived  hope  he  is  again  amid  the  defiles  and  fastnesses 
of  danger-haunted  mountains,  with  steady  eye  and  patient  steps, 
and  perseveiing  toil,  pursuing  his  undeviating  track.  Calmly,  ma- 
jesticallv,  with  proud  heart  and  defiant  energy,  he  subdues  every 
opposing  obstacle,  overcomes  every  difficulty,  conquers  every  peril, 
and  at  last  with  triumph  on  his  brow  and  exultation  in  his  heart,  he 
plants  his  foot  upon  the  coveted  shore  and  dedicates  it  to  God,  to 
Freedom  and  his  Native  Land. 

In  the  histories  of  past  ages  and  nations,  there  are  names  that 
will  live  in  enduring  remembrance  while  freedom  exists  on  earth. 
The  virtues  and  patriotism  of  Epaminondas  perpetuate  his  name  as 
the  brightest  that  adorns  the  history  of  Theban  Independence. 
The  courage  of  Hannibal,  whose  conquering  legions  traversed  the 
Alps,  and  overswept  the  classic  plains  of  Italy,  is  indelibly  associa- 
ted with  the  unforgotten  glory  of  Carthage.  With  Athens  is  iden- 
tified f^  galaxy  of  her  brilliant  sons,  and  clusters  of  constellated 
names  adorn  the  coronal  of  Roman  fame.  But  in  the  cycle  of  com- 
ing years,  when  the  pen  of  the  historian  shall  trace  the  origin  and 
settlement  of  this  occidental  commonwealth,  shall  depict  the  virtues, 
the  sufferings,  privations,  fortitude  and  intrepidity  at  the  basis  of 
the  achievement,  shall  describe  the  mighty  impulse  it  has  given  to 
the  progress  of  free  government  and  extension  of  free  principles, 
and  shall  glisten  the  truthful  page  with  the  names  of  the  heroic 
founders  of  its  fame,  there  is  none  that  will  gem  the  record  with  a 
purer  or  more  enduring  lustre  than  the  name  of  the  immortal  Sut- 
TEK — the  illustrious  Original  of  California  Pioneers. 

In  the  immigrant  throng  aspiring  for  the  western  bourne,  there 
came  other  than  manly  forms  and  brawny  arms,  and  hearts  of  iron 
will  and  fierce  determination.  The  perilous  travel,  the  waterless 
desert,  the  fatiguing  sands,  the  exhausting  ascent,  the  fear,  the 
doubt,  the  trembling  hope  and  final  exultation,  were  destined  not 
for  man  alone.  Nor  was  the  desertion  of  home,  nor  the  abandon- 
ment of  friends,  nor  the  relinquishment  of  ties  that  rend  the  heart, 
the  bitter  fruit  alone  of  manly  privation.  There  were  gentle  be- 
ings,  with  loving  hearts  and  melting  eyes,  and  faces  fair  as  the 


358  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF    THE    PACIFIC, 

lioiiris  of  the  Moslem's  Eden,  wlio,  rising  superior  to  the  wilfull- 
ness  of  Orpah,  and  betraying  the  self-sacrificing  devotion  of  Kuth, 
exclaimed  each  to  the  treasured  object  of  worldly  affection,  and 
hojpe,  and  trust — "Whither  thou  goest,  I  will  go;  where  thou  lodg- 
est,  I  will  lodge;  thy  people  shall  be  my  people,  and  th}'  God  my 
God. "  It  was  a  pure,  a  sublime,  an  exalted  devotion — a  devotion 
not  unlike  that  of  Mary's  at  the  sepulchre  of  the  Redeemer.  Tiu:n- 
ing  for  ever  their  fascinated  gaze  from  the  cherished  haunts  of  na- 
tivity, with  confidence,  and  courage,  and  heroism,  they  too,  follow- 
ed the  illumination  of  the  star  of  empire,  alluring  them  to  the 
unexplored  regions  of  the  west.  Fatigue  did  not  discourage  them, 
suffering  did  not  dismay,  sickness  did  not  appall,  peril  did  not  inti- 
midate. Emboldened  by  a  lofty  spirit,  sustained  by  a  noble  pride, 
and  encouraged  by  a  fond  ambition,  they  encountered  with  boldness 
the  miseries  of  privation,  the  horrors  of  pestilence,  the  gloomy  and 
foreboding  apparitions  of  famine  and  death.  There  are  recollec- 
tions at  which  the  heart  recoils.  There  are  scenes  at  the  contem- 
plation of  which  the  soul  shrinks  in  unutterable  anguish,  the  warm 
blood  freezes  in  its  veins,  and  the  quiet  brain  becomes  distraught 
with  intensest  agony.  The  pen  is  inadequate  to  portray — the  tongue 
is  powerless  to  utter  the  appalling  reminiscences  that  make  up  the 
record  of  woman's  experience,  or  the  patience  and  fortitude  with 
which  she  endured  it  all,  in  the  ultimate  hope  of  becoming  a  moth- 
er of  an  unborn  Eepublic.  The  toil,  the  tribulation,  the  sorrow 
and  suffering  have  passed,  and  some — a  few  only — of  the  fair  relics 
of  the  toilsome  adventure,  are  gazing  upon  the  enchanting  spectacle 
of  to-day — so  like  the  illusory  splendors  of  a  sommer  dream — with 
joyous  looks  and  beaming  countenances,  and  hearts  lifted  with 
gratitude  to  the  Dispenser  of  every  earthly  benefaction.  In  our 
hearts  we  greet  them,  in  our  heai-ts  we  bless  them,  and  with  grate- 
ful emotions  extend  to  them  the  chief  homage  of  this  jubilant  an- 
niversary. 

To  you,  fellow  Pioneers,  a  word  of  congratulation  and  I  have 
done. 

This  palatial  city  of  San  Francisco,  with  its  luxurious  mansions, 
its  granite  palaces  and  its  costly  marts  of  commerce,  is  the  glorious 
fruitage  of  your  adventure.  The  subdued  waters  of  its  bay,  the  ex- 
tended lines  of  its  quays,  the  busy  hum  of  its  thoroughfares,  the 
exliibitions  everywhere  visible  of  its  taste,  its  opulence  and  refine- 
ment, are  the  splendid  creations  and  magnificent  testimonials  of 
your  enterprise.  Scourged  as  it  has  been  by  the  devastating  flame, 
retarded  by  natural  obstacles,  and  at  times  inundated  by  swarms  of 
lawless  banditti,  it  has  never  been  diverted  from  its  onward  pro- 
gress, nor  ceased  to  be  the  monarch  wonder  of  the  world.  Like  a 
young  Titan,  it  has  humbled  the  rugged  wilderness,  has  upheaved 
the  seated  hills  from  their  foundations,  and  with  a  conqueror's  step 
has  advanced  along  the  pathway  of  progress  like  a  prince  to  a 
throne.  Its  harbor  glistens  with  a  forest  of  masts  belonging  to  the 
ships  of  every  nation,  which  have  poured  and  are  pouring  upon  oui 
shores  the  accumulated  riches  of  the  East,  and  vaster  treasures  from 


EDWARD   J.    C.    KETTEN.  359 

every  clime  than  ever  freighted  the  galleons  of  Spain  or  the  argo- 
sies of  Venice. 

Champollion  taught  the  world  to  decipher  the  hieroglyphics  on 
the  ohelisk  the  tombs  and  temples  of  Egj-pt,  but  a  higher  gloiy 
was  reserved  for  the  Pioneers  of  the  Pacific,  by  whom  was  destined 
the  revelation  to  mankind  of  its  unavailing  search  of  centuries — the 
western  route  to  the  commerce  of  the  Indies  and  of  the  islands  of 
the  Eastern  Archipelago.  Coincident  with  the  exhumation  of  gold- 
en treasures  from  the  bleak  summits  of  the  Sierras,  was  the  contri- 
bution to  our  shore  of  the  riches  of  China  and  Japan,  and  the 
remote  Islands  of  the  Pacific  waste  of  waters.  One  other  acquisi- 
tion and  the  glory  of  San  Francisco  will  have  reached  its  zenith. 
"When  the  veins  and  arteries  of  commercial  life  shall  permeate  the 
broad  expanse  that  separates  the  Golden  Gate  from  the  Atlantic, 
then  will  its  magnificent  destiny  proclaim  it  the  commercial  metro- 
polis of  the  woiid,  outrivaling  in  commerce,  in  arts,  in  science  and 
literature  the  renown  of  antiquity,  and  the  boasted  pretensions  of 
modern  greatness.  If  this  sublime  consummation  is  defeated,  free- 
dom will  be  deprived  of  its  brightest  hope,  and  a  crime  will  be 
perpetrated  against  the  social  and  political  necessities  of  humanity, 
more  wicked  than  that  which  classic  fable  has  punished  with  the 
naked  rock  and  the  gnawing  vulture.  Promote  this  glorious  enter- 
prise, and  the  swelling  splendors  and  far-reaching  fame  of  this 
mighty  continent  will  be  imperishable  monuments  to  the  memory 
of  the  Pioneers  of  Freedom  and  Destiny. 


CHARLES  WESTMORELAND 


THE  name  which  heads  this  article  was  that  of  one 
of  the  most  genial  and  pleasant  men  who  ever 
devoted  themselves  earnestly  to  a  good  cause.  Charles 
Westmoreland  was  born  in  Georgia,  in  1829,  of  good 
ancestry.  He  was  liberally  educated,  and  possessed 
qualities  which  would  have  made  him  a  popular  leader 
in  his  native  State;  but  his  manhood  had  hardly  begun 
when,  in  1853,  he  came  to  California.  After  a  brief 
trial  at  the  hazards  of  mining,  which  every  one  made  in 
those  days,  he  turned  his  attention  to  law,  literature,  and 
politics.  He  was  first  prominently  known  as  State  Sen- 
ator from  Placer  county,  having  been  elected  to  that 
office  on  the  Know-Nothing  ticket  in  1855.  He  was  the 
youngest  member  af  the  Senate  at  that  time,  except 
Burton,  of  Nevada,  being  only  twenty-six  years  old. 
His  Know-Nothingism  was  only  a  temporary  cloak  for 
hostility  to  State-Rights  Democracy,  and  after  the  dis- 
memberment of  the  party,  he  allied  himself  with  the 
Free- Soil  Democracy  of  California  under  the  leadership 
of  Broderick,  to  whom  he  was  warmly  attached. 

During  his  term  in  the  Senate,  he  was  intimate  with 
the  lamented  Ferguson,  who  was  killed  in  a  duel  with 
George  Pen  Johnston  in  1859,  and  eloquently  mourned 
by  Col.  E.  D.  Baker.  Both  were  men  of  brilliant  qual- 
ities and  too  social  habits,  though  Westmoreland  sub- 


362  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

sequently  led  a  more  prudent  life,  and  had  made  sure 
of  an  honorable  career. 

Subsequently  to  his  legislative  career,  Westmoreland 
tried  his  professional  fortunes  in  Oregon,  where  he  made 
the  acquaintance  of  most  of  the  leading  men  of  the  day. 
He  had  returned  to  California  before  the  rebellion  broke 
out,  and  when  that  event  occurred  was  residing  in  Shasta. 
As  editor  of  the  Courier^  a  v/eekly  newspaper  in  that 
town,  he  distinguished  himself  by  the  strong  Union 
ground  he  took,  and  by  the  vigor,  wit,  and  sarcasm  with 
which  he  assailed  the  Peace  Democracy.  Although  a 
Southerner  born,  and  with  a  wife  and  child  behind  him 
in  Georgia,  he  never  hesitated  in  his  allegiance  to  the 
cause  of  the  Republic,  and  was  restrained  by  no  pre- 
judices born  of  ^'the  peculiar  institution." 

After  the  election  in  1861,  when  the  Union  men  of 
the  State  were  divided  in  rival  organizations,  he  lent  his 
influence  to  the  movement  for  a  consolidation  of  the 
loyal  vote,  and  was  largely  instrumental  in  carrying  the 
War  Democrats  of  his  county  into  the  Union  party  which 
was  formed  in  the  spring  of  1862.  When  leaders  like 
John  Conness  seemed  inclined  to  hold  aloof  from  the 
movement,  afraid  of  losing  their  personal  consequence, 
he  aided  it  with  patriotic  enthusiasm. 

During  the  winter  of  1862  and  spring  of  1863,  he 
was  associate  editor  of  the  MarysvUle  Appeal,  a  conspicuous 
and  influential  Republican  daily.  After  the  nomination 
of  the  Union  State  ticket  in  1863,  he  took  charge  of  the 
San  Francisco  Republic,  a  warm  campaign  paper  founded 
on  the  ruins  of  the  old  Herald. 

At  the  first  session  of  the  Legislature  which  met 
under  the  amended  constitution,  in  December,  1863,  he 
was  elected  by  the  Union  members  of  the  Senate  Secre- 
tary of  their  body,  in  recognitipn  of  his  services  to  the 
Union  cause.  During  the  Presidential  campaign  of  1864 
he  was  Secretary  of  the  Union  State  Central  Committee, 
in  which  position  he  contributed  materially  to  organize  the 
efficient  canvass  by  which  California  was  carried  for  Lincoln. 

After  returning  from  a  short  trip  to  Washington,  he 
established  himself  in  the  legal   profession   at  Areata, 


CHARLES   WESTMORELAND.  363 

Humboldt  county,  continuing  to  be  always  an  active 
Union  partisan,  and  using  both  his  voice  and  pen  in 
defence  of  the  most  advanced  Republican  principles. 

He  was  elected  to  the  Assembly  of  1867-8,  and  was 
the  leader  of  the  Republican  minority  in  that  body,  de- 
fending his  party  ideas  and  measures  in  the  face  of  a 
triumphant  majority,  with  ready  ability  and  eloquence. 

He  was  a  competitor  with  Chancellor  Hartson  for  the 
Congressional  nomination  in  the  Northern  District,  in 
1868.  Failing  of  that  nomination,  he  accepted  a  place 
on  the  Grant  electoral  ticket,  and  stumped  his  district 
until  the  close  of  the  campaign.  He  was  elected  mes- 
senger to  carry  the  vote  of  the  State  to  Washington,  and 
left  San  Francisco  upon  that  honorable  errand  by  the 
steamship  Montana^  September  4th,  1868.  This  was 
during  the  height  of  the  memorable  small-pox  epidemic. 
He  had  contracted  the  disease,  which  developed  itself  on 
the  voyage,  and  carried  him  to  his  grave  at  Panama,  on 
the  25th  of  December.  His  friend  William  B.  Carr  car- 
ried the  electoral  vote  to  Washington  by  his  appointment. 
Mr.  Westmoreland  was  apparently  in  the  best  health  when 
he  left  San  Francisco.  •  His  tall  and  ample  form,  his 
rosy  cheeks  and  fair  complexion,  his  genial  smile  and 
gay  conversation,  seemed  to  be  the  indices  of  a  satisfied 
mind,  looking  forward  to  an  honorable  career.  He  ex- 
pected to  meet  a  motherless  son  for  the  first  time  in 
many  years,  after  a  separation  painfully  prolonged  by 
the  war  at  the  South.  But  it  was  not  to  be.  That  boy 
is  now  the  ward  of  his  father's  friend,  George  C.  Gorham, 
Secretary  of  the  United  States  Senate.  Congress  passed 
a  resolution  appropriating  for  the  orphan  the  money  his 
father  would  have  received  as  messenger.  Westmoreland 
was  possessed  of  a  pleasing  eloquence,  both  as  speaker  and 
writer.  He  was  a  witty  and  genial  companion,  a  man  of 
strong  opinions  and  original  expressions,  and  an  en- 
thusiastic idealist  on  the  subject  of  equal  rights  and  human 
progress.  His  untimely  death  was  widely  regretted.  His 
former  neighbors  in  Northern  California  have  made  ar- 
rangements to  erect  a  monument  over  his  remains  in 
their  distant  place  of  rest. 


EUGENE  CASSERLY 


EUGENE  Casserly,  Senator  of  the  United  States  from 
California,  was  born  at  Mullingar,  county  of  West- 
meath)  Ireland,  in  1822.  His  family  was  a  branch  of  the 
O'Connors,  and  was  formerly  known  as  the  O'Connor 
Casserlys,  from  a  marked  personal  characteristic  in  one 
of  his  progenitors.  His  father  and  grandfather  were 
both  schoolmasters,  and  the  latter  a  man  of  considerable 
influence  among  his  neighbors  and  countrymen,  with 
whom  he  took  an  active  part  in  the  Rebellion  of  '98, 
being  at  the  head  of  one  of  the  insurgent  lodges  whose 
ramiiications  permeated  the  middle  and  southern  portions 
of  the  island  at  that  time.  He  suffered  severely  in  per- 
son on  the  disastrous  termination  of  the  attempt  at  In- 
dependence, and  narrowly  escaped  with  life. 

Patrick  Sarsfield  Casserly,  the  father  of  the  subject 
of  the  present  sketch,  emigrated  to  the  United  States  in 
1824,  bringing  with  him  his  family,  consisting  of  his  wife 
and  little  Eugene,  then  two  years  old.  It  is  reported, 
we  believe  with  truth,  that  the  father  went  directly  from 
the  ship  to  the  Court-room  to  take  the  preliminary  steps 
towards  becoming  a  citizen  of  his  adopted  country,  be- 
fore he  had  even  prepared  a  resting-place  for  his  family. 
Immediately  thereafter,  he  resumed  the  practice  of  his 
profession,  and  for  many  years  was  at  the  head  of  a  well 
known  educational  establishment  in  New  York  city.  He 
was  a  man  of  superior  intelligence  and  culture,  and  was 
known  as  one  of  the  best  classical  scholars  of  his  day  in 
the  United  States.     He  personally  supervised  the  educa- 


366  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE  PACIFIC. 

tion  of  his  family,  and  being  an  enthusiast  in  classical 
studies,  he  commenced  to  instill  the  rudiments  of  Greek 
and  Latin  into  the  minds  of  his  children  at  a  very  early 
age.  Thus  Eugene  was  studying  Greek  at  five  years  of 
age — a  period  when  few  children  now-a-days  have  com- 
menced the  study  of  their  mother -tongue.  The  boy 
showed  wonderful  aptitude  for  the  task,  however,  and 
progressed  in  his  studies  so  rapidly  that  at  a  very  early 
age  he  was  enabled  to  render  material  assistance  to  his 
father  in  compiling  and  editing  a  number  of  classical 
educational  works,  with  which  the  name  of  the  parent  is 
honorably  connected.  For  a  number  of  years — in  fact, 
until  he  closely  approached  manhood — Mr.  Casserly  as- 
sisted his  father  in  the  conduct  of  his  school ;  but  when 
he  touched  twenty,  or  thereabouts,  he  determined  to 
launch  into  the  world  on  his  own  account  and  carve  out 
his  own  career. 

At  the  time  we  speak  of,  young  Casserly' s  character 
and  literary  attainments  had  attracted  the  attention  of  a 
number  of  influential  persons,  prominent  among  whom 
was  Dr.  Hughes,  then  Bishop,  and  subsequently  Arch- 
bishop of  ]^ew  York,  who  was  his  early,  steadfast,  and 
most  judicious  friend.  When,  therefore,  he  had  deter- 
mined to  commence  the  battle  of  life,  he  found  friends 
not  unwilling  to  aid  him,  and  although  the  conflict  was 
at  first  a  hard  one,  success  soon  began  to  smile  upon  his 
efforts. 

Mr.  Casserly' s  first  attempts  were  directed  to  journal- 
ism, and  he  obtained  the  position  of  editor  of  the 
FreemariJs  Journal^  then  struggling  for  the  position  it  has 
since  obtained  as  the  leading  Irish  Catholic  journal  of 
the  metropolis.  His  marked  ability  soon  told  on  the 
fortunes  of  that  paper,  and  in  a  short  time  he  succeeded 
in  placing  it  on  a  permanent  basis.  At  the  same  time, 
he  contributed  freely  to  many  of  the  leading  journals  of 
New  York,  Boston,  and  Washington,  and  became  well 
known  to  the  editorial  fraternity  as  a  rising  member  of 
the  profession,  and  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  had  he 
continued  in  it,  he  would  long  since  have  attained  to 
eminence  therein.     His  ambition,  however,  led  him  in 


EUGENE   CASSERLY,  367 

another  direction ;  and  while  yet  engaged  in  the  duties 
of  editor,  he  entered  himself  as  a  student  at  law  in  the 
office  of  Mr.  John  Bigelow,  then  a  leading  member  of 
the  Kew  York  bar,  subsequently  one  of  the  editors  of  the 
Evening  Post,  and  more  recently  Minister  to  France  from 
the  United  States.  He  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1844, 
and  was  shortly  afterwards  chosen  attorney  of  the  cor- 
poration of  New  York  city,  a  position  of  considerable 
emolument  and  patronage. 

The  '^  California  fever,"  which  prevailed  so  extensively 
throughout  the  Atlantic  States  in  1849,  did  not  spare 
our  young  advocate,  who  hoped  to  find  in  a  new  country 
a  shorter  road  to  fame  and  fortune  than  that  worn  by  so 
many  wearied  feet  in  the  old  States.  In  July,  1850,  he 
started  by  the  Panama  route,  and  arrived  in  San  Fran- 
cisco in  August  of  that  year.  The  field  of  journalism 
promising  well  at  the  time,  he  brought  to  San  Francisco 
the  materials  of  a  printing  office,  and  in  a  short  time 
after  his  arrival,  in  connection  with  Mr.  Benjamin  R. 
Buckalew,  he  started  the  Public  Balance^  a  daily  paper, 
which  soon  acquired  in  a  particular  manner  the  con- 
fidence of  the  community.  His  partner,  however,  was 
an  uncongenial  spirit,  and  after  a  few  months  of  success- 
ful efibrt,  they  separated,  Mr.  Casserly  changing  the  name 
of  the  paper  to  the  True  Balance^  and  subsequently  to  the 
Standard.  At  this  time  he  was  elected  State  Printer  by 
the  Legislature  then  in  session,  the  first  that  met  under 
the  American  flag.  Business  prospered,  and  the  future 
looked  bright,  when  the  disastrous  fire  of  May  3d  and 
4th,  1851,  swept  his  whole  property  away  in  a  night. 
His  library  alone  was  saved.  Without  means,  but  with 
a  courageous  heart,  he  faced  the  world  anew. 

Mr.  Casserly  now  determined  to  devote  himself  per- 
manently to  the  law,  and  from  this  resolution  he  never 
afterwards  swerved.  His  success  was  rapid  and  constant, 
and  for  many  years,  if  not  the  leader,  he  certainly  was 
second  to  no  one  practicing  at  the  California  bar. 

In  early  manhood,  Mr.  Casserly  connected  himself 
with  the  Democratic  party  of  the  United  States,  affiliating 
himself  with  the  advanced  wing  of  the  organization  then 


368  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

led  by  Silas  Wright  of  N"ew  York.  He  lias  always  been 
an  active  member  of  the  party  in  California^  as  in  fact  he 
was  one  of  its  founders,  and  continued  one  of  its  most 
approved  counsellors.  This  was  particularly  the  case  in 
the  dark  days  towards  the  close  of  the  great  civil  war, 
when  at  times  it  seemed  as  if  the  party,  in  the  face  of 
constant  and  overwhelming  defeat,  was  doomed  to  anni- 
hilation. It  is  hardly  saying  too  much  to  assert  that  its 
preservation  and  its  succeeding  triumphs  on  the  Pacific 
coast  were  due  to  the  indomitable  pluck  and  perseverance 
of  Mr.  Casserly,  who  would  never  consent  to  an  abandon- 
ment of  the  struggle,  even  when  it  seemed  most  hopeless. 
When  the  troubles  which  eventually  led  to  the  out- 
break of  the  great  civil  war  first  began  to  overshadow  the 
land,  Mr.  Casserly  threw  his  whole  influence  into  the  scale 
of  peace ;  nor  did  he  ever  relax  his  efi'orts,  urging  stren- 
uously and  with  all  his  power  the  necessity  for  concession 
on  both  sides,  and  the  propriety  especially  of  granting 
to  the  Southern  States  the  guarantees  they  demanded. 
When,  however,  war  was  actually  inaugurated,  he  promptly 
took  his  place  by  the  flag  under  whose  folds  he  had  been 
placed  in  infancy  by  his  father,  and  no  less  strenuously 
urged  the  necessity  for  supporting  the  Government  with 
every  man  and  dollar  in  the  land.  He  lent  his  powerful 
aid  in  preventing  the  State  of  California  from  drifting 
into  the  vortex  of  secession  that  at  one  time  threatened. 
He  took  an  active  part  in  the  organization  of  the  Sanitary 
Commission,  an  organization  instituted  to  care  for  the 
wounded  soldiers  in  the  field.  While  thus  doing  his  ut- 
most to  secure  the  supremacy  of  the  Grovernment,  he 
nevertheless  always  pronounced  in  favor  of  holding  the 
administration  strictly  to  the  cause  for  which  the  war 
was  prosecuted — the  restoration  of  the  supremacy  of  the 
flag  under  the  constitution,  frowning  at  all  attempts  to 
engraft  other  and  extraneous  issues  upon  the  struggle. 
He  warmly  advocated  the  election  of  Gen.  McClellan  to 
the  Presidency  in  1864,  standing  firmly  on  his  "platform," 
that  the  war  must  be  prosecuted  to  an  honorable  peace, 
but  that  peace  once  established,  the  States  in  rebellion 
should  be  at  once  restored  to  their  position  in  the  Union, 


EUGENE   CASSERLY.  369 

with  all  the  rights  and  guarantees  they  held  under  the 
constitution. 

Although  the  Democracy  failed  to  elect  their  can- 
didate in  1864^  the  wisdom  of  Mr.  Casserly's  policy  in 
putting  the  party  on  a  patriotic  constitutional  basis  was 
apparent  within  a  comparatively  short  period,  when  that 
party  achieved  a  complete  triumph  in  the  election  of 
Governor  Haight — a  triumph  which  in  turn  placed  Mr. 
Casserly  in  the  most  honorable  position  in  the  gift  of  the 
people  of  California.  Immediately  on  the  assembling  of 
the  Legislature  in  1867,  (the  first  in  which  the  Democrats 
had  held  a  majority  for  many  years)  he  was  brought  for- 
ward as  a  candidate  for  the  United  States  Senate,  and, 
after  a  spirited  contest,  was  elected  b}^  a  large  majority  in 
December  of  that  year,  to  serve  for  six  years  from  March 
4th,  1869,  on  which  day  he  was  sworn  into  office  and  took 
his  seat. 

Mr.  Casserly  is  a  ripe  scholar,  a  proficient  in  several 
foreign  languages,  and  a  master  of  his  own.  He  is  one 
of  the  best  classical  scholars  on  the  Pacific,  and  is  a  Mas- 
ter of  Arts  of  Georgetown  College,  D.  C,  an  institution 
remarkably  chary  of  its  honors.  He  is  a  pleasing  speaker, 
although  not  what  could  be  called  a  popular  orator,  his 
voice  lacking  the  volume  requisite  for  addressing  large 
open-air  audiences,  and  the  severity  of  his  taste  restrict- 
ing him  from  the  flights  which  many  less  gifted  speakers 
attempt  with  ease.  In  a  moderate-sized  chamber  he  is 
very  effective,  and  is  always  a  close  and  exhaustive  logic- 
ian. Some  of  his  efforts  at  the  bar  are  models  in  their 
way,  and  he  is  admirably  adapted  to  the  field  he  now  oc- 
cupies in  the  Senate  of  the  United  States. 

He  is  a  man  of  medium  height,  with  a  well-knit 
frame,  and  a  clear,  though  deep-set  brown  eye.  The  size 
and  conformation  of  his  head  indicate  a  large  and  well- 
balanced  brain ;  while  his  temperament  is  ardent  yet  well 
restrained.  His  hair  is  prematurely  white.  His  private 
life  is  as  spotless  as  his  public  character,  and  no  better 
testimonial  to  his  worth  need  be  sought  for  than  the  fact 
that  his  selection  to  the  Senate  was  hailed  by  the  best 
men  of  both  parties  as  a  triumph  of  intelligence  and 
24 


370  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OP   THE   PACIFIC. 

Virtue,  and  that  a  partisan  press — more  violent  in  its 
bigotry  perhaps  than  any  in  the  Union — was  silent,  or 
spoke  but  to  say  that  his  party  dare  not  reject  him.  With 
the  exception  of  the  positions  of  Corporation  Attorney 
in  New  York  and  State  Printer  in  California,  both  of 
which  were  strictly  in  the  line  of  his  professional  duties, 
Mr.  Casserly  never  sought  nor  held  public  office  prior  to 
his  election  to  the  Senate. 

In  1854,  at  San  Francisco,  Mr.  Casserly  married 
Teresa,  daughter  of  the  late  John  Doyle,  Esq.,  one  of 
the  oldest  and  most  respected  merchants  of  N'ew  York 
city.  By  her  he  has  issue,  two  sons  and  a  daughter. 
Mr.  Casserly' s  mother  and  several  brothers  are  living  in 
!N'ew  York. 


BY  HON.  EUGENE  CASSEKLY. 

At  the  opening  of  the  Superior  Court  of  San  Francisco,  Nov.  22d,  1852 — ^the 
news  of  the  death  of  Daniel  Webster  having  just  reached  California — Eugene 
Casserly,  Esq.,  on  behalf  of  the  bar,  arose  and  delivered  the  following  tribute  to 
the  memory  of  the  great  American  lawyer  and  statesman, 

Ma.y  it  PLEASE  YOUR  Honor:  In  accordance  with  an  observance 
prompted  by  the  best  impulse  of  our  nature,  and  sanctioned  by  an 
honorable  usage,  I  have  to  move  that  this  Court  adjourn  for  this  day, 
without  the  transaction  of  business,  out  of  respect  for  the  genius,  serv- 
ices, and  memory  of  Daniel  Webster.  When,  on  the  night  before 
last,  the  deep  signal-gun  of  the  steamship  broke,  amid  the  storm  and 
darkness  of  midnight,  upon  our  silent  city,  it  was  a  far  less  startling 
sound  than  the  tidings  which  it  announced,  sudden,  heavy,  sad,  of 
an  event  that  is  nothing  less  than  a  national  disaster.  "  Death  (it  is 
said)  loves  a  shining  mark,"  and  of  late  his  unemng  shafts  have  been 
launched  fast  and  frequent  into  the  lessening  circle  qf  the  statesmen 
and  patriots,  of  whom  Webster  was  among  the  greatest  and  the  last. 
It  was  but  the  other  day  that  the  solemn  funeral  obsequies  filled  the 
city  with  gloom,  and  the  long  procession  flowed  through  the  streets; 
and  still  the  sable  badges  of  mourning,  conspicuous  in  all  the  public 
places,  and  in  these  Court-rooms,  and  about  the  judgment-seats,  speak 
the  people's  love  and  sorrow  for  another  illustrious  man — the  con- 
temporary of  Daniel  Webster — ^his  associate  in  the  Halls  of  Congress, 


EUGENE    CASSERLY.  371 

and  through  long  years  of  signal  public  services  his  compeer  and 
friend,  Henry  Clay,  of  Kentucky.  Again  and  again,  while  the  heart 
of  the  nation  is  still  swelling  with  that  great  bereavement,  comes 
another  blow:  one  by  one  Death  takes  them,  and  as  each  of  that 
shining  band  falls,  the  sound  shakes  the  land  even  to  this  far  Pacific 
shore.  One  after  another  they  have  gone  from  among  us,  to  be  for- 
evermore  with  the  spirits  of  the  just  made  perfect;  but  when  Daniel 
Webster  is  taken,  there  is  left  an  aching  void  of  grief,  dismay  and 
desolation,  by  which  we  may  know  how  gxeat  was  the  space  he  filled 
in  the  thoughts  and  affections  of  his  country. 

Mr.  Webster  was,  in  the  best  sense  of  the  words,  a  self-made 
man,  and  his  success  in  the  very  highest  stations  is  a  splendid  tribute, 
not  less  to  the  equality  of  our  institutions,  than  to  his  own  exalted 
powers.  Born  in  the  fourth  year  after  the  Declaration  of  Independ- 
ence, amid  the  sterile  hills  and  deep  forests  of  New  Hampshire — 
his  father,  a  captain  in  Stark's  company — Daniel  Webster,  a  poor 
boy,  with  no  advantages  of  education  except  what  he  could  glean 
from  the  humble  village  schools  of  New  England;  owing  nothing  to 
connection,  nothing  to  position,  nothing  to  opportunity — except  that 
which  genius  makes  for  itself — rose  by  swift  ascents  through  all  the 
grades  of  success  and  honor,  as  a  lawyer,  a  legislator,  a  senator,  an 
ambassador,  a  chief  minister  of  the  Cabinet,  until  his  greatness  be- 
came a  part  of  his  country's  growth,  and  penetrated  into  every 
quarter  of  Europe;  so  that  when  "  the  inevitable  hour"  came  to  him. 
after  he  had  passed  the  limit  of  age  allotted  to  man,  he  sank,  ripe  in 
years  and  fame,  in  the  fullness  of  his  dignities  and  renown.  In  the 
course  of  a  public  life  of  forty  years  and  upwards,  during  which  his 
powers  of  mind  and  force  of  character  permitted  him  to  take  no 
second  part,  it  may  be  there  have  been  measures  of  his  upon  which 
his  countr;yTnen  will  differ  in  their  judgment.  But  the  sincerity  of 
his  purpose,  the  rectitude  of  his  principles,  the  dignity  of  his 
manhood,  who  can  justly  arraign?  Who  can  say  with  trutli  that  his 
intellect — the  mightiest  among  men — was  not  ever  guided  by  pat- 
riotism; or  that  in  the  service  of  his  country  his  great  soul  ever 
harbored  one  mean  or  disloyal  thought — one  wish  that  was  not  de- 
voted to  her  welfare  and  her  glory? 

Among  the  loftiest  minds  of  the  nation,  he  filled  fitly  the  highest 
place.  During  his  career  in  the  Senate  of  the  United  States,  his 
associates  were  such  men  as  Clay  and  Calhoun,  Benton  and  Wright, 
and  many  more  of  inferior,  but  still  of  great,  power  and  reputation. 
It  was  a  galaxy  of  worth  and  intellect,  where  stars  of  less  than  the 
first  magnitude  ''  paled  their  ineffectual  fires,"  and  were  lost.  But 
Webster  still  shone  the  brightest  there;  he  "led  the  starry  host." 
His  intellect,  ca^Dacious  and  powerful,  grasped  the  questions,  and 
wielded  them  at  will.  His  logic  was  like  the  touch  of  Ithuriel's  spear, 
and  the  march  of  his  rhetoric  was  like  the  swell  of  the  sea.  His 
eloquence,  disdaining  the  ornaments  and  the  meretricious  aids  with 
which  weaker  natures  seek  to  hide  their  poverty,  rose  like  his  native 
mountains,  in  simple,  severe,  self-sustaining  strength  and  majesty, 
lifting  all   subjects  which  it  embraced  oiit   of  the  fogs  and  mists 


372  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF  THE  PACIFIC. 

of  a  lower  sphere  into  the  clear  sunshine  and  free-  air  of  a  higher 
heaven. 

But,  if  your  Honor  pleases,  it  was  in  our  own  profession — as  a 
lawyer — that  we  love  to  contemplate  him.  Most  worthily  did  he 
represent  the  true  dignity  and  excellence  of  the  law;  and  in  it  did  he 
achieve  the  first  and  the  most  unquestioned  of  his  triumphs.  Here, 
also,  he  won  his  last.  His  speech  for  the  prosecution  in  the  famous 
Crowninshield  case,  is  a  classic  in  our  schools;  and  in  the  great  case 
of  the  Dartmouth  College,  before  the  highest  judicial  tribunal  of  the 
land,  he  brought  the  whole  vigor  of  his  intellect,  his  resistless  logic 
and  commanding  eloquence,  to  the  vindication  and  establishment  of 
the  provision  in  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  guaranteeing 
the  inviolability  of  contracts.  But,  however  great  these  or  any  other 
of  his  legal  arguments  may  have  been,  it  is  conceded  that  the  last 
occasion  of  his  appearance  at  the  bar,  in  the  Goodyear  Patent  case, 
betrayed  no  abatement  of  his  powers.  To  the  last  he  was  still  him- 
self— still  the  first  of  living  lawyers.  Like  the  orb  of  day,  though 
past  his  meridian,  he  shone  to  the  last  with  undiminished  light  and 
majesty;  or  rather,  like  some  mighty  river  as  it  nears  the  ocean,  his 
intellect,  verging  to  Eternity,  flowed  on  in  wider  and  more  placid 
grandeur. 

Great  as  a  lawyer,  as  a  Senator,  as  an  Ambassador  clothed  with 
powers  and  responsibilities  the  most  august,  as  the  Chief  Minister 
of  the  Cabinet  at  Washington,  conducting  the  gravest  and  most 
difficult  relations  with  foreign  powers,  and  administering  the  highest 
executive  functions  with  character,  talent,  and  dignity — it  w^as  never- 
theless his  peculiar  glory  that  he  was  the  Champion  and  Expounder 
of  the  Constitution.  Here,  his  heart  and  intellect  found  their  most 
acceptable  exercise,  and  here,  great  though  they  were,  they  found  an 
ample  field.  He  brought  to  the  task  a  rare  combination  of  qualities 
— an  intellect  trained  to  its  utmost  development  in  the  conflict  of 
the  bar  and  the  Senate — a  wealth  of  historical  knowledge  and  il- 
lustration— a  fervor  of  patriotism — an  earnestness  and  a  power  of 
eloquence,  which  fitted  him  to  be  the  interpreter  and  guardian  of  the 
charter  of  our  rights  as  a  confederation,  and  which  nothing  could 
withstand.  However  men  might  differ  from  him,  as  to  some  of  his 
conclusions  upon  the  exciting  questions  which  have  divided  the 
country — none  could  deny  to  him  this  preeminence  and  this  trust. 
It  was  a  sacred  duty,  and  in  more  than  one  time  of  gloom  and  trial, 
right  well  did  he  do  his  work.  And  behold  his  reward — a  reward 
to  minds  like  his  more  grateful  than  any  honors,  any  office,  any 
Presidency.  He  had  the  gratitude  of  his  countrymen,  and  he  lived 
to  see  the  Union  and  Constitution  he  had  done  so  much  to  guard  and 
sustain,  growing  greater  and  stronger  to  the  last  hour  of  his  Hfe. 

In  his  own  grand  language,  and  in  happy  fulfilment  of  the  prayer 
so  devoutly  expressed  in  the  peroration  of  his  speech,  in  reply  to 
Senator  Hayne,  of  South  Carolina,  in  the  Senate,  in  January,  1830: 

"  When  his  eyes  turned  to  behold  for  the  last  time  the  sun  in 
heaven,  he  did  not  see  him  shining  on  the  broken  and  dishonored  frag- 
ments of  our  once  glorious  Union;  on  States  dissevered,  discordant, 


EUGENE   CASSERLY.  373 

belligerent;  on  a  land  rent  with  civil  feuds,  or  drenched  in  fraternal 
blood.  Rather  did  their  last  feeble  and  lingering  glance  behold  the 
gorgeous  ensign  of  the  RepubHc,  now  known  and  honored  through- 
out the  whole  earth,  still  full  high  advanced,  its  arms  and  trophies 
streaming  in  their  original  lustre :  not  a  stripe  erased  or  polluted, 
nor  a  single  star  obscured — bearing  for  its  motto  no  such  miserable 
interrogatory  as  'What  is  all  this  worth?'  nor  those  other  words  of 
delusion  and  folly,  '  Liberty  first  and  Union  afterwards;'  but  er^'ery- 
where,  spread  all  over  in  characters  of  living  light,  blazing  on  all  its 
ample  folds,  as  they  float  over  the  sea,  and  over  the  land,  and  in 
every  wind  under  the  whole  heavens,  that  other  sentiment,  dear  to 
exery  true  American  heart.  Liberty  and  Union,  now  and  for  ever,  one 
and  inseparable." 

Forty  years,  with  a  genius  and  patriotism  not  often  equalled,  had 
he  served  his  country  and  his  countrymen,  when  from  the  highest 
place  in  the  Cabinat  and  its  weighty  cares,  he  withdrew  for  a  brief 
period  into  the  repose  and  retirement  of  his  farm  at  Marshfield. 
Even  then,  his  last  official  act  was  to  avert  the  collision  threatened  on 
our  norihem  waters,  between  this  country  and  the  greatest  of  earthly 
powers  beside.  Even  there,  in  that  refuge,  death  found  him  out, 
and  with  remorseless  hand  took  from  us  all  of  Daniel  AVebster  that 
would  die. 

It  is  past!  A  good  and  a  faithful  servant,  he  has  fought  his  last 
fight  on  earth.  His  spirit  has  returned  to  Him  who  gave  it.  There 
is  a  lamentation  and  a  gloom  in  the  land.  In  the  highest  realms  of 
intellect,  where  he  ruled  with  supreme  dominion,  there  is  a  void. 
The  place  that  has  known  him  shall  know  him  no  more.  No  more 
shall  he  shine  in  the  front  of  the  worth,  the  intellect,  and  the 
patriotism  of  the  nation.  No  more,  amid  "listening  senates,"  or 
among  the  rulers  of  the  people,  shall  be  seen  the  majesty  of  his 
presence,  his  Olympian  head,  "  the  front  of  Jove  himself."  No  more 
shall  his  eloquence  sway  with  magic  power  the  hearts  of  men. 
No  more  shall  his  master  hand,  with  conscious  strength,  guide  the 
helm  of  aifairs.  No  more  in  the  thick  and  troubled  night  shall  his 
country  look  to  the  light  of  his  genius  as  to  her  guiding  star;  in  vain 
shall  she  with  sad  inquiry  explore  the  darkening  firmament,  whence 
that  bright  planet  has  disappeared,  making  it  to  suffer  a  disastrous 
eclipse ! 

But,  no;  let  me  be  pardoned  these  words.  It  is  not  for  such  as 
Daniel  Webster  to  die  and  be  ^no  more.  In  that  solemn  moment 
between  time  and  eternity,  when  the  soul  of  man  just  about  to  shake 
off  its  earthly  trammels,  pierces  with  new  sight  into  the  future,  on 
the  brink  of  which  it  hovers,  his  soul,  endowed  with  this  prophetic 
sense,  gave  it  utterance  in  the  words,  "  I  still  live!" 

Yes,  he  still  lives,  in  his  great  example  and  his  magnificent  serv- 
ices, in  his  genius  and  his  patriotism,  of  which  the  light  and  glory 
are  still  over  the  whole  land,  and  will  be  with  us  always  to  guide,  to 
encourage,  and  to  exalt — lives  in  the  heart  of  his  country,  and  in 
whatever  else  of  her  is  most  immortal,  in  her  history  and  her  renown, 
in  her  freedom,  in  her  greatness,  and  in  eternal  destiny — ^lives,  while 


374  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

the  mountains  stand  and  the  rivers  flow — lives,  while  the  Union  and 
the  Constitution  live,  never  to  die  until  they  fall,  and  the  very  name 
of  the  Kepublic  is  blotted  from  the  earth. 

But,  if  your  Honor  please,  why  should  I  say  more?  "What  man, 
with  words,  can  add  to  the  greatness  of  Daniel  Webster,  of  Massa- 
chusetts, of  New  England,  of  the  Union,  of  the  w^orld;  or  why 
should  I,  with  my  feeble  rushlight,  seek  to  show  forth  the  meridian 
effulgence  ?  From  a  task  too  great  for  my  powers,  I  willingly  escape, 
and  move  that  this  Court  adjourn  for  the  day. 


V^- 


HENRY  WAGER  HALLECK 

^Y   ^UDGE    J.     y/.     J^REELON. 


MAJOR  General  Henry.  Wager  Halleck,  U.  S.  Army, 
was  born  on  the  banks  of  the  Mohawk  River,  at 
Westville,  Oneida  County,  State  of  New  York,  in  1815. 
He  is  a  lineal  descendant  from  Peter  Halleck,  one  of  the 
Pilgrim  Fathers,  who  landed  at  Halleck' s  Neck,  Southold, 
in  1640,  and  settled  within  the  limits  of  Aquebogue,  near 
Mattituck.  •. 

The  family  name*  in  England  is  Holly  Oak,  and  Fitz 
Greene  Halleck,  the  poet,  traced  back  the  lineage  to  the 
Percy  family.  The  Genefal's  grandfather.  Deacon  Gabez, 
changed  the  spelling  of  the  faiiiily,,name  from  Hallock  to 
Halleck — the  orthography  adopted  also  by  that  branch 
of  the  family  from  which  Fitz  Greene  Halleck  descended. 
The  subject  of  this  biographical  notice  does  not,  however, 
claim  any  interest  in  the  Mount  Halak  territory  annexed 
by  Joshua,  and  which  the  poet  used  to  claim  as  the  orig- 
inal homestead  of  his  Puritan  ancestors. 

General  Halleck' s  father,  Joseph,  was  a  Lieutenant  in 
the  war  of  1812,  and  a  civil  magistrate  in  his  county  for 
some  thirty  years.  His  mother  was  the  daughter  of  Hen- 
ry Wager,  of  Oneida  County,  New  York.  He  was  a  man 
of  strong  sense,  and  filled  many  legislative  and  political 
positions  with  credit.  His  father  came  from  Baden  Bad- 
en and  settled  on  the  Hudson  River.  The  old  mansion, 
with  its  gable  end  towards  the  street,  built  of  bricks  im- 
ported from  Holland,  is  still  standing  in  Columbia  Coun- 
ty. The  name  was  originally  spelled,  as  it  still  is,  in  Ger- 
many, Waghner. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch,  after  a  preliminary  academi- 


376  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

cal  education,  and  a  brief  residence  at  Union  College,  New 
York,  entered  the  Military  Academy  in  1835,  nominated 
by  the  late  Judge  Beardsley,  then  Member  of  Congress, 
and  was  graduated  and  promoted  as  Second  Lieutenant  of 
Engineers  in  1839 — ranking  third  in  a  class  of  thirty-one 
cadets.  During  his  furlough,  he  returned  to,  and  com- 
pleted his  studies  at,  Union  College.  From  his  graduation 
till  1844  he  was  on  duty  as  Assistant  Professor  of  Engi- 
neering, at  the  Academy,  and  employed  on  the  fortifica- 
tions in  'New  York  harbor.  In  1845  he  made  an  extend- 
ed tour  in  Europe,  examining  into  the  various  military 
establishments  of  the  principal  States.  After  his  return, 
he  delivered  a  series  of  lectures  before  the  Lowell  Insti- 
tute, of  Boston,  on  Military  Art  and  Science. 

In  the  summer  of  1846  he  was  sent^  via  Cape  Horn, 
to  the  Pacific  Coast,  and  was  actively  employed  both  in 
civil  and  military  capacities  during  the  Mexican  war.  For 
gallant  conduct  in  the  affairs  of  Palos,  Prietos  and  Urias, 
Mexico,  November  19th  and  20th,  1847,  he  was  breveted 
a  Captain.  He  was  subsequently  distinguished  in  the 
affairs  of  San  Antonio  and  Todos  Santos,  Lower  Califor- 
nia, March  16th  and  30th,  1848.  At  the  former  place, 
with  a  small  detachment  of  mounted  volunteers  with 
whom  he  had  made  a  forced  march  from  La  Paz,  he  sur- 
prised and  defeated  a  Mexican  garrison  of  several  hun- 
dred men,  capturing  two  officers  and  other  prisoners,  the 
colors  and  official  records ;  destroying  arms  and  ammuni- 
tion, and  returning  to  his  post  within  thirty  hours,  during 
which  he  had  accomplished  these  results  and  a  march  of 
one  hundred  and  twenty  miles.  At  Todos  Santos  he  led 
the  attack  with  two  companies  of  the  New  York  Volun- 
teers, and  "for  his  assistance  as  Chief  of  Staff,"  and  "for 
the  able  manner  in  which  he  led  on  the  attack,"  he  was 
specially  commended  in  the  official  report  of  his  com- 
manding officer. 

Captain  Halleck  also  acted  as  Aid-de-Camp  to  Commo- 
dore Shubrick  in  the  naval  and  military  operations  along 
the  Mexican  coast,  and  in  that  capacity  participated  in 
the  capture  of  Mazatlan,  of  which  place  he  was  made 
Lieutenant  Governor.     He  is  closely  identified  with  the 


HENRY   WAGER   HALLECK.  377 

early  history  of  California,  acting  as  Secretary  of  State 
under  the  military  governments  of  Generals  Mason  and 
Riley,  and  during  the  same  period  as  Auditor  of  the  Rev- 
enues. He  was  a  prominent  member  of  the  Convention 
assembled  in  1849  to  form  a  State  Constitution;  and  as 
an  active  member  of  the  drafting  committee,  had  an  im- 
portant part  in  the  preparation  of  that  instrument ;  being 
distinguished  also  for  his  able  and  determined  opposition 
against  all  attempts  to  engraft  African  slavery  upon  this 
State.  Between  the  years  1850  and  1854,  he  was  on  duty 
as  Judge  Advocate  and  Inspector  and  Engineer  of  Light- 
houses on  this  coast.  Having  attained  the  rank  of  Cap- 
tain of  Engineers,  he  resigned  from  the  army.  In  1854  he 
entered  into  the  practice  of  law  in  San  Francisco,  and  was 
fur  many  years  the  senior  partner  of  one  of  the  largest  law- 
firms  in  California.  He  was  Director  General  of  the  ^^ew 
Almaden  Quicksilver  Mine,  1850-61;  President  of  the 
Pacific  and  Atlantic  Railroad  from  San  Francisco  to  San 
Jose,  1855,  and  Major  General  of  Militia,  1860-61. 

Soon  after  the  breaking  out  of  civil  war  he  returned 
into  the  army,  being  appointed  on  the  recommendation 
of  Lieut.  Gen.  Scott,  a  Major  General,  August  17th, 
1861.  From  November  of  same  year  till  March,  1862,  he 
was  in  command  of  the  Department  of  the  Missouri,  hold- 
ing also  a  commission  as  Major  General  of  Missouri  Mili- 
tia. During  this  period  he  was  actively  engaged  in  re- 
constructing a  chaotic  department  in  which  materiel  was 
wanting  and  the  personnel  was  demoralized,  and  in  direct- 
ing offensive  operations  against  the  enemy.  He  had 
the  principal  direction  of  the  military  movements  result- 
ing in  the  successful  campaigns  of  the  West,  commenc- 
ing in  February,  1862. 

In  March,  1862,  General  Halleck  assumed  command  of 
the  Department  of  the  Mississippi,  and  in  the  following 
month  took  immediate  command  of  the  army  before  Cor- 
inth. The  investment  of  this  place  was,  under  his  per- 
sonal direction,  conducted  to  a  successful  issue,  notwith- 
standing obstacles  almost  insurmountable.  Deficient  in 
the  means  of  transportation,  he  advanced  over  and  in 
roads  nearly  impassable,  and  through  forests  that  might 


378  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

have  been  deemed  impenetrable  by  any  other  troops  than 
those  under  his  command. 

After  the  unfortunate  termination  of  General  McClel- 
lan's  campaign,  resulting  in  the  withdrawal  of  an  heroic 
army  from  the  front  of  Richmond  to  the  banks  of  the 
James,  the  President  decided  to  call  a  soldier  to  Wash- 
ington, to  assume,  under  his  direction,  a  general  control 
over  all  the  armies  of  the  United  States.  General  Hal- 
leck  was  selected  by  the  administration  for  this  purpose, 
and  was  at  once  summoned  to  Washington.  But,  being 
fully  aware  that  the  position  would  involve  grave  respon- 
sibilities— without  corresponding  powers  to  direct — and 
that  therein  he  would  find  the  duties  extremely  arduous, 
harassing,  and  utterly  thankless,  he  asked  that  he  might 
be  allowed  to  remain  with  his  own  troops.  The  Presi- 
dent's order,  however,  succeeded  the  invitation,  and  the 
General  cheerfully  entered  upon  the  duties  of  his  new 
position,  assuming  command  of  the  army  in  July,  1862. 
He  thus  sacrificed  the  opportunity  for  reaping  personally 
the  results  which  followed  the  operations  initiated  and,  to 
a  great  extent,  conceived  by  him,  and  which  were  so  glo- 
riously executed  by  our  Western  armies.  He  was  in 
command  of  the  army  till  March,  1864,  when  he  was  re- 
lieved at  his  own  request,  and  in  view  of  General  Grant's 
promotion  to  the  grade  of  Lieutenant  General.  He  then, 
at  the  urgent  request  of  the  President  and  at  the  desire 
of  General  Grant  and  the  Secretary  of  War,  remained  at 
Washington  and  acted  as  Chief  of  Staff  of  the  Army  till 
cessation  of  hostilities.  The  duties  of  this  position,  anom- 
alous in  our  service,  were,  inasmuch  as  the  General-in- 
Chief  was  permitted  to  take  the  field,  essentially  the  same 
as  those  that  he  had  been  permitted  to  exercise  as  com- 
manding general.  The  embarrassments  were  somewhat 
increased,  while  the  power  of  individual  action  was  even 
more  restrained.  In  view  of  his  own  experience  at  Army 
Headquarters  he  advised  General  Grant  to  remain  away 
from  the  stronghold  of  the  politicians,  and  to  seek  safety 
from  their  mines  under  the  fire  of  Lee's  Army.  In  this 
advice  he  was  most  cordially  sustained  by  the  brilliant 
Sherman. 


HENRY   WAGER  HALLECK.  379 

Upon  General  Grant's  return  to  Washington,  after  re- 
ceiving General  Lee's  surrender,  General  Halleckwas  sent 
to  Richmond  in  command  of  the  Military  Division  of  the 
James,  and  was  specially  charged  with  the  reeestablish- 
ment,  so  far  as  practicable,  of  loyal  civil  government  in 
Virginia.  In  July,  1865,  he  was  assigned  to  command  of 
the  Military  Division  of  the  Pacific,  and  returned  to  his 
home  and  assumed  that  command  in  August  of  same 
year. 

The  General  is  the  author  of  a  work  on  "Bitumen: 
its  varieties,  properties,  and  uses,"  1841 ;  of  "Elements  of 
Military  Art  and  Science,"  1846 — and  a  second  edition, 
"with  critical  notes  on  the  Mexican  and  Crimean  Wars," 
1858;  of  "A  Collection  of  Mining  Laws  of  Spain  and 
Mexico,"  1859 ;  of  a  work  on  "  International  Law,  or  rules 
regulating  the  intercourse  of  States  in  Peace  and  War," 
1861,  and  of  "A  Treatise  on  International  Law  and  the 
Laws  of  War,  prepared  for  the  use  of  Schools  and  Col- 
leges," 1866.  Translator  and  Editor  of  "  De  Fooz  on 
the  Law  of  Mines,  with  introductory  remarks,"  1860; 
and  of  "  General  Jomini's  Life  of  Napoleon,"  with  notes, 
1864. 

The  Degree  of  A.  M.  was  conferred  upon  him  by 
Union  College  in  1843,  and  that  of  LL.  D.  in  1862. 
His  published  works  alone  are  enough  to  make  a  reputa- 
tion for  any  reasonable  man,  and  will  always  remain  a 
monument  of  his  learning  and  industry.  They  are  con- 
stantly quoted  as  authority  in  the  Courts.  We  have  heard 
one  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States 
say  that  upon  the  "rules  of  war"  the  Supreme  Court 
considered  General  Halleck  as  "the  best  authority." 
But  his  double  life  of  civillian  and  soldier  has  been  so 
full,  so  crowded,  we  may  say,  that  his  authorship  seems 
almost  a  secondary  thing  in  his  history. 

In  September,  1848,  he  was  appointed  Professor  of 
Engineering  in  "Lawrence's  Scientific  School"  of  Har- 
vard University,  Massachusetts,  which  appointment  he 
declined. 

General  Halleck  has  been  one  of  the  best  abused  men 
in  the  country.     As  General-in-Chief  he  was  forced  to 


380  EEPRESENTATIYE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

occupy  a  position  misunderstood,  even  in  the  army.  It 
was  one  of  responsibility  without  power.  He  had  no 
authority  to  act  otherwise  than  was  approved  by  the 
President  and  the  Secretary  of  War.  He  could  simply 
advise  them,  and  then  act  as  they  saw  best;  the  nation 
holding  him  responsible  for  the  simple  execution,  in  good 
faith,  of  orders  that  were  oftentimes  in  direct  conflict  with 
his  own  judgment.  When  General  Grant  succeeded  him 
the  people  had  become  heartily  tired  of  the  mixed  Direc- 
tory, and  Congress  conferred  upon  that  General  powers 
that  had  never  been  granted  to  his  predecessors. 

General  Halleck  exhibited  a  commendable  spirit  of 
self-sacrifice  in  remaining  in  Washington  as  Grant's  chief- 
of-stafiP,  after  his  own  experience  of  the  annoyances  sur- 
rounding an  army  Headquarters  so  inconveniently  near 
the  seat  of  Government. 

The  General  has  certainly  betrayed  none  of  the  pro- 
fessional jealousy  supposed  to  be  characteristic  of  military 
men,  and  which  has  impaired  the  usefulness  of  some  of 
our  most  prominent  soldiers.  It  was  he  that  first  discov- 
ered and  nourished  the  war-like  qualities  of  Sheridan. 
It  was  he  that  recommended,  first,  Buell  and  Grant,  and 
then  C.  F.  Smith  for  promotion  as  Major  Generals  of  Volun- 
teers— Badeau  being  mistaken  in  asserting  that  Smith  was 
recommended  before  Grant.  He  was  also  an  earnest  ad- 
vocate of  the  claims  of  Grant,  Sherman,  Thomas,  Meade, 
and  McPherson,  for  promotion  in  the  regular  army. 
During  the  war  he  was  in  most  cordial  cooperation  with 
these  distinguished  men. 

It  was  Halleck  that  sustained  Grant  while  in  difficulties, 
both  after  Fort  Donelson  and  after  Pittsburg  Landing. 
On  the  latter  occasion  the  steady  support  of  his  command- 
ing General  was  of  vital  importance  to  the  present  Chief 
Magistrate.  The  pressure  brought  upon  General  Halleck 
by  the  President,  Secretary  of  War,  and  several  of  the 
Western  Governors,  for  the  removal  of  Grant  from  all 
command,  was  almost  irresistible.  To  save  him  from  be- 
ing absolutely  shelved.  General  Halleck  placed  him  sec- 
ond in  command  to  himself,  it  being  impossible  to  con- 
tinue him  at  that  time  of  popular  prejudice  in  command 


HEXRY   WAGER   HALLECK.  381 

of  one  of  the  armies.  These  circumstances  have  been 
gravely  misrepresented  by  Badeau  in  his  life  of  Grant. 
It  is  not  true  that  Halleck  ever  issued  orders  for  Banks 
to  supersede  Grant  at  Yicksburg.  Such  action  ^Yas  un- 
doubtedly discussed  by  his  superiors,  but  General  Halleck 
had  no  desire  to  see  Grant  superseded. 

Again,  just  before  the  battle  of  Nashville,  General 
Grant  becoming  impatient  at  the  apparent  slowness  of 
Thomas'  movements,  directed  that  he  should  be  relieved; 
but  Halleck' s  faith  in  Thomas  was  so  strong  that,  al- 
though entirely  unsupported  by  the  Administration  in 
such  action,  he  assumed  the  responsibility  of  withholding 
the  order.  A  glorious  victory  was  the  result  of  the  op- 
portunity thus  preserved  to  General  Thomas. 

The  friends  of  McClellan  charged  his  removal  from 
command  to  Halleck's  influence;  but  although  urged  by 
the  Secretary  of  War,  and  nearly  the  entire  Cabinet,  to 
join  with  them  in  recommending  that  change,  he  refused 
to  comply. 

Neither  was  General  Halleck  responsible  for  the  ap- 
pointment to  or  removal  from  command  of  Burnside  or 
Hooker.  When  it  was  determined,  however,  to  relieve 
the  latter,  the  General  recommended  Meade  as  his  suc- 
cessor. 

General  Halleck  married,  in  1855,  a  granddaughter  of 
Alexander  Hamilton,  and  daughter  of  John  C.  Hamilton, 
Author  of  '^History  of  the  Republic  of  the  United  States," 
^'Life  of  Hamilton,"  ''Works  of  Hamilton,"  etc.  He  has 
only  one  child,  a  son,  now  thirteen  years  old.  The  General 
is  a  very  wealthy  man,  having  made  his  fortune  out  of  the 
professional  emoluments  of  his  practice  of  law  in  Califor- 
nia. His  firm,  owdng  in  a  great  degree,  to  the  knowledge 
of  the  Mexican  language,  and  titles,  and  customs  acquired 
during  his  early  residence  on  the  Pacific  by  the  General, 
did  probably  the  largest  and  most  profitable  land  business 
in  procuring  the  confirmation  of  Spanish  grants,  ever 
done  in  the  United  States  by  one  law  firm. 

In  June,  1869,  under  orders  from  headquarters  at 
Washington,  General  Halleck  relinquished  to  General 
Thomas  the  command  of  the  Department  of  the  Pacific, 


382  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

and  assumed  that  of  the  Department  of  the  South^  with 
headquarters  at  Louisville,  Kentucky,  where  he  is  now 
stationed.  He  lives  in  a  style  becoming  his  position  and 
means,  but  entirely  without  ostentation — cautious,  wise, 
of  untiring  industry,  of  great  research — having  at  com- 
mand vast  stores  of  patiently-acquired  information  upon 
almost  all  subjects.  Conservative  and  just  by  nature,  he 
is  calculated  to  be  a  safe  adviser,  and  we  trust  and  be- 
lieve that  his  days  of  useful  service  are  only  commenced. 
He  showed,  when  a  young  man,  in  the  actions  with  the 
enemy  in  Lower  California  and  Mexico,  that  impetuous 
personal  bravery  so  befitting  the  young  soldier,  and  indeed 
so  necessary  to  make  up  the  perfect  commander.  At 
West  Point,  in  matters  of  discipline  especially,  he  was 
always  looked  upon,  even  when  a  boy,  as  an  authority, 
and  his  boyish  decisions  are  even  yet  quoted  at  the 
"Point." 

The  portrait  accompanying  this  sketch  gives  a  fair 
idea  of  his  personal  appearance,  and  justifies  the  soubri- 
quet given  him  by  his  soldiers,  of  "Old  Brains."  He  is 
about  5  feet  11  inches  in  height,  and  weighs  about  190 
pounds.  His  smile  is  very  genial,  and  his  whole  bearing 
is  courteous  and  dignified. 

General  Halleck  belongs  peculiarly  to  California,  and 
is  identified  with  its  history;  he  owes  it  almost  all,  and 
it  owes  him  much.  Until  the  breaking  out  of  the  civil 
war,  he  always  voted  with  the  Democratic  party,  and  his 
sympathies  are  with  that  party,  except  inasmuch  as  they 
have  been  changed  by  the  events  of  the  war.  When 
peace  was  declared  between  the  United  States  and  Mex- 
ico, General  Halleck  was  perhaps  the  most  influential  and 
best  known  man  in  California ;  but  he  is  not  fitted  for  the 
arts  of  the  successful  politician,  otherwise  he  would  un- 
doubtedly have  been  sent  as  one  of  our  first  Senators  to 
the  National  Capital.  As  it  was  he  received  18  votes 
for  U.  S.  Senator,  which  were  almost  enough  to  elect. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  Society  of  California  Pioneers,  and 
is  President  of  the  Society  of  Veterans  of  the  Mexican 
War,  an  organization  in  which  he  seems  to  take  much 
interest.     His  home  is  in  California,  and  we  may  well  be 


HENRY  WAGER  HALLECK.  383 

glad  that  we  have  so  sagacious  and  so  able  a  man  ready- 
in  war  or  in  peace  to  aid  and  to  guide  us.  This  is  not 
the  time  to  discuss  his  qualities  as  the  great  general,  nor 
are  we  qualified  for  the  task ;  but  w^e  may  be  permitted 
to  say  that  it  is  by  no  means  proven,  that  under  the  same 
circumstances  he  would  not  have  been  the  equal  of  the 
best  soldiers  the  war  has  produced. 

One  Napoleonic  quality,  we  certainly  know  he  pos- 
sessed in  a  high  degree — the  power  of  judging  and  choos- 
ing men.  Always,  from  the  first,  he  recognized  the  lofty 
military  merit  of  such  men  as  McClellan,  Sherman,  Lee, 
Thomas,  and  others,  and  the  qualities  of  that  most  suc- 
cessful of  all  of  them — our  present  President. 

History  will  do  justice  to  the  great  services  he  ren- 
dered his  country,  while  performing  his  arduous  and  deli- 
cate duties  at  Washington  during  the  war.  His  negative 
services  were,  perhaps,  even  more  valuable  than  his  pos- 
itive. Officially  associated  with  civillians  claiming  to  un- 
derstand the  whole  art  of  war,  whose  policies  and  plans 
were  constantly  changing,  a  ''break"  and  a  balance-wheel 
were  both  absolutely  needed.  We  believe  that  General 
Halleck  was  the  right  man  in  the  right  place  at  the  right 
time,  and  did  as  much  as  any  human  being  could  do  under 
those  anomalous  and  fearful  circumstances ;  and  posterity, 
when  all  is  known,  will  honor  him  for  what  he  prevented 
as  well  as  for  what  he  accomplished. 


DAYID  C.  BRODERICK. 


IT  is  a  remarkable  absurdity  for  an  American  biography 
to  commence  with  the  humbleness  of  the  birth  of  its 
subject.  In  this  land,  it  is  doubtful  if  the  scion  of  any 
family  can  show  a  coat-of-arms  with  quarterings  sufficient 
to  entitle  him  to  Maltese  knighthood,  or  satisfactory  to 
an  Austrian  chamberlain.  Almost  all  family  lines,  pre- 
tentious or  honest,  will  be  found  not  only  ''  waxed  at  the 
other  end,"  but  nearer  still  to  the  gentle  propositus,  ''by 
some  plebeian  vocation."  There  is  something  ridiculous 
in  the  long,  barren  lines  of  Ebenezers  and  Ezekiels  hung 
about  the  loins  of  Mayflower  progenitors  that,  like  the 
strings  of  dried  fruit  in  a  New  England  kitchen,  form  the 
pride  of  the  inglorious  but  not  mute  Puritan  genealogical 
minds.  It  is  not  how  long  the  trailing  root  has  crept 
below  the  shallow  soil,  but  how  high  the  oak  towers 
above,  that  measures  our  admiration  of  ancestral  qualifi- 
cations. 

Nor  is  gentility  south  of  Mason  and  Dixon's  line  sub- 
stantial enough  to  bear  the  pruning  of  a  heraldic  visita- 
tion. American  agrarianism  has  proved  too  much  for 
primogeniture  and  landed  chiefs;  and  Sir  Bernard  Burke 
would  look  with  no  small  degree  of  suspicion  at  even  the 
most  flourishing  family  tree,  however  illustrated  by  Vir- 
ginian generosity  or  the  punctiliousness  of  South  Caro- 
linian honor. 

David  Colbrith  Broderick.  therefore,  need  not  pite- 
ously  and  in  forma  pauperis  claim  additional  credit  for 
obstacles  surmounted  by  him  as  a  poor  man  in  a  land 
25 


386  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

where  all  start  alike  comparatively  equally  light  in  purse 
and  family  influence. 

One  fact,  however,  might  be  noted:  he  was  of  Irish 
extraction.  'No  Yankee  angularity  marred  and  narrowed 
his  soul  at  the  outset  in  life ;  no  Calvinistic  superstition  or 
bigotry  barred  his  mind  to  generous  impressions ;  no  New 
England  twang  marred  or  prejudiced  his  tongue.  He  was 
not  obliged  to  carry  the  pro-slavery  burden  about,  like  a 
hereditary  hump,  to  be  guarded  from  insult  and  injury. 
He  could  therefore  assume  the  character  of  a  national 
man  with,  more  sincerity  than  most  of  those  who  were  his 
coadjutors  in  political  life.  Not  stunted  by  New  England 
barrenness,  nor  rendered  perverse  by  Southern  impetu- 
osity, Broderick  may  well  be  considered  fortunate  in  his 
breeding,  in  spite  of  the  apparent  disadvantages  of  im- 
perfect education  and  a  youth  of  toil. 

He  v/as  born  in  the  city  of  Washington,  under  the 
very  shadow,  as  it  were,  of  the  Capitol,  on  the  fourth 
day  of  February,  1820.  His  parents  were  Irish — his  father 
a  stonecutter.  In  Broderick' s  sixth  year,  the  family 
moved  to  New  York  city,  where  they  settled  permanently. 

Broderick  received  but  little  instruction  in  those  days. 
Even  before  his  father's  death,  which  occurred  in  his 
fourteenth  year,  he  had  learned  to  assist  in  the  occupa- 
tion his  parent  pursued.  In  his  seventeenth  year,  he  was 
apprenticed  regularly  to  the  trade,  and  followed  it  sys- 
tematically for  some  years. 

At  that  period,  as  well  by  reason  of  the  necessity 
which  proud  poverty  must  meet  to  battle  with  the  world, 
as  from  the  fact  that  he  was  an  elder  brother,  and  as  such 
had  boyish  battles  to  fight,  and  boyish  airs  of  command 
to  aftect,  he  acqinred  w^hat  might  be  termed  an  honest 
arrogance,  not  founded  in  conceit  or  egotism,  but  which 
was  a  characteristic  of  physical  temperament  rather  than 
of  his  mind.  It  became  part  of  his  manner,  as  year  by 
year  the  circumstances  which  elicited  it  were  changed  in 
character  but  not  in  force.  But  Broderick  was  a  veritable 
leader  of  men.  Neither  want  of  polish  or  wealth  could 
deprive  him  of  his  place  in  society,  or  prevent  his  stand- 
ing forth  a  Saul  among  his  brethren. 


DAVID   C.    ERODERICK.  387 

Accident,  more  than  any  personal  taste,  made  him  a 
publican.  In  1841,  he  kept  a  place  called  "  Subterranean 
Hall;"  and  the  year  after,  another,  known  as  ''  Republican 
Hall."  This  employment,  however,  must  have  been  a 
mere  makeshift,  such  as  every  man  in  California,  how- 
ever prosperous,  has  at  times  been  obliged  to  seize — a 
sudden  and  disagreeable  refuge  from  the  storms  of  pov- 
erty. He  was  meanw^hile  rapidly  working  his  way  through 
the  temporary  crust  of  ignorance,  and  making  himself 
respected  and  understood  among  his  fellows. 

At  that  time,  the  Democratic  party  in  New  York  and 
elsew^here  was  gradually  falling  into  two  ranks,  marked 
by  the  energy  of  different  generations — the  Old  Hunkers 
and  the  Young  Democracy.  To  the  latter,  Broderick 
was  joined;  and  with  it,  in  the  local  politics,  he  soon 
became  identified. 

He  also  was  prominent  in  the  Fire  organization,  and 
was  actively  engaged  as  foreman  in  the  Howard  Engine 
Company  No.  34,  corner  of  Christopher  and  Hudson 
streets,  in  his  District. 

To  the  routine  mind  of  the  East  that  bends  round- 
shouldered  over  its  ledger,  and  stares  through  its  well- 
to-do  spectacles  with  disfavor  at  organized  rufiianism,  as 
embodied  in  a  volunteer  Fire  Department,  there  is  some- 
thing inexplicable  in  the  idea  that  it  should  form  a  power 
in  the  State ;  that  there  should  step  forth  from  its  ranks 
men  of  moral  courage,  of  heroic  wills,  of  promptness  in 
speech  and  action,  rendering  their  possessors  no  mean 
antagonists  in  forensic  dispute.  Yet  it  was  from  such 
sources  that  no  small  part  of  the  power  of  the  senatorial 
ex-mason  sprung,  and  by  it  that  his  character  was  some- 
what tinctured.  His  command  over  men  was  not  the 
suave,  polished,  silvery-tongued  utterance  of  cloistered 
scholarship,  nor  the  crafty  hammering  of  ^  the  special 
legal  pleader:  it  was  rather  the  hoarse,  startling  outcry 
that  thrilled  through  the  fireman's  trumpet,  and  that 
found  its  result  in  the  instantaneous  comprehension  of 
his  hearers,  and  their  almost  involuntary  acquiescence 
therein. 

In   1842,  Broderick's  mother  died;   and   two   years 


388  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OP   THE   PACIFIC. 

after,  his  only  brother,  Richard,  who  had  just  been  ap- 
pointed to  the  United  States  Naval  School,  was  killed  by 
the  chance  explosion  of  an  old  bomb  that  had  been 
thrown  among  the  refuse  iron  of  a  foundry  on  Charleston 
street,  New  York.  Thus  Broderick  was  without  a  rela- 
tive in  this  country;  and  the  solitariness  of  his  bereaved 
condition  cast  a  melancholy  almost  bordering  on  morose- 
ness  over  his  whole  manner  and  character. 

It  was  during  these  years  that  he  gathered  the  ele- 
ments of  political  strength  that  never  after  deserted  him. 
Party  friends,  better  fortuned  as  to  literary  and  historic 
learning,  then  opened  their  social  circles  and  library  doors 
to  him,  and  the  opportunities  thus  offered  were  seized 
and  intelligently  used  by  him  to  measurably  repair  the 
gaps  left  by  early  neglect.  Though,  so  to  speak,  of  a 
rude  and  unkempt  turn  as  to  bookish  training,  yet  Brod- 
erick was  not  a  man  utterly  void  of  any  culture  of  even 
the  highest  order.  However  he  may  have  found  the 
favorable  time  and  circumstances,  he  read  and  appre- 
ciated the  highest  and  most  sesthetic  poets  of  his  time 
with  an  understanding  that  would  have  done  honor  to 
the  mellowest  scholarship  of  the  old  country. 

Such  a  man,  with  an  earnest  eye  for  knowledge,  alive 
to  the  thoughts  and  passions  of  great  ones  gone  by,  does 
far  more  satisfactory  honor  to  the  book  from  which  lie 
receives  instruction,  to  the  page  of  history  which  he 
searches,  or  to  the  bard  in  whom  he  finds  the  expression 
of  his  heart,  than  the  lazy  saunterer  through  sterile  text- 
books, leaning  on  the  crutches  of  grammatical  discipline, 
pushed  and  lifted  along  by  weary  instructors,  until  in  due 
time  the  barren  academic  degree  drops  into  his  lap  like  a 
rotten  windfall,  for  which  he  himself  has  not  striven,  and 
which  he  has  not  deserved. 

The  Parthenon  of  Broderick' s  intellect  was  never 
finished.  It  was  continually  shooting  up  into  new  col- 
umns that  gave  promise  at  some  future  day  of  approxi- 
mate perfection ;  and  had  his  life  been  as  long  as  those 
of  the  average  of  English  or  even  American  statesmen, 
we  may  well  consider  that  its  progressive  and  expanding 
condition  would  have  brought  an  old  age  tempered  with 


DAVID   C.    BRODEHICK.  389 

all  the  refinement,  as  well  of  books  as  of  polite  conversa- 
tion and  communion. 

In  the  year  1846,  Broderick  made  his  first  loDg  politi- 
cal stride  forwards.  He  was  nominated  for  Congress  by 
the  Young  Democracy  of  his  District;  and  though  de- 
feated, the  fight  only  showed  the  partisan  strength  and 
personal  popularity  then  grasped  by  him. 

In  June,  1849,  Broderick  arrived  in  California,  and 
was  for  some  time  employed  in  the  Assay  Office  or  Mint 
carried  on  by  Samuel  W.  Haight  on  Clay  street.  Mr. 
Broderick,  though  working  as  an  operative  in  Mr.  Haight's 
establishment,  became  a  candidate  for  the  seat  in  the 
State  Senate  left  vacant  by  the  election  of  the  Hon. 
Nathaniel  Bennett  to  the  Supreme  Bench,  and  was 
elected,  and  served  as  well  the  partial  as  the  succeeding 
full  term. 

His  experience  and  tact  in  the  matter  of  a  volunteer 
fire  department  became  very  acceptable  to  the  new  city 
in  those  days  of  conflagrations;  and  he,  together  with 
George  W.  Green,  an  ancient  friend  of  the  Atlantic  side, 
organized  the  first  fire  company  in  San  Francisco,  (Em- 
pire Company,  No.  1,)  and  became  its  foreman,  with  Mr. 
Green  for  assistant. 

He  received  a  flattering  evidence  of  his  success  as  a 
practical  legislator  at  this  time.  On  the  resignation  of 
Governor  Burnett,  and  Lieutenant  Governor  McDougal 
becoming  acting  Governor,  Mr.  Broderick  became  Presi- 
dent of  the  Senate,  a  position  which  he  filled  well,  and 
on  the  resignation  of  McDougal,  a  short  time  previous  to 
the  expiration  of  his  term,  Mr.  Broderick  became  virtu- 
ally Governor  of  the  State. 

When  Broderick  was  a  State  Senator,  the  election  of 
United  States  Senator  became  a  duty  of  that  Legislature, 
and  Broderick  received  a  warm  Democratic  support  from 
his  colleagues;  but  the  caucus  held  showed  one  more 
vote  for  Mr.  Weller,  and  Broderick  cast  his  vote  at  the 
election  for  his  rival. 

Broderick  now  became  a  private  citizen,  and  by  steadi- 
ness, tact,  and  ability,  acquired  a  fortune  sufficient  to 


390       REPRESENTATIVE  MEN  OP  THE  PACIFIC. 

place  him  at  liberty  to  gratify  his  ambition  in  public 
life. 

He  entered  into  the  party  struggles  of  the  time, 
bringing  an  energy  and  political  tact  that  oftentimes  in- 
sured the  success  of  his  friends,  otherwise  doubtful. 

Yet  his  method  of  concentrating  his  political  forces 
had  nothing  in  it  of  the  creeping  style  of  trams  and 
snares.  He  made  no  concessions.  He  was  no  trimmer, 
to  yield  to  strength  what  weakness  could  not  have  ob- 
tained. He  planned  with  the  political  board  fully  con- 
sidered, and  his  victories  were  as  rigid  as  a  game  of  chess. 
No  humble  follower  dared  to  intervene  with  variations 
of  the  mode  of  attack  or  defence.  The  leader  was  the 
same  doiiiineering  spirit  who  knew  how  to  defend  in 
boyish  days  his  weaker  brother,  and  now  stood  by  politi- 
cal or  personal  friend  against  political  or  personal  foe, 
unflinching  and  unchanging. 

Broderick  wished  a  seat  in  the  United  States  Senate. 
It  was  a  glorious  ambition  for  one  who  as  a  boy  had 
known  so  much  of  the  muddy  side  of  life,  and  who  had 
now  reached  a  pinnacle  from  which  he  might  survey  the 
future,  and  choose  the  road  preferable  to  him. 

Broderick' s  method  of  attaining  his  end  brought  upon 
him  all  the  personal  and  political  hostility  that  for  the 
rest  of  his  life  closed  about  him. 

Year  after  year,  the  Legislature  met,  now  at  Benicia, 
now  at  Sacramento ;  caucuses  were  held ;  test  votes  were 
cast;  and  Broderick  failed  to  grasp  the  coveted  honors, 
retreating,  however,  only  with  the  consciousness  of  no 
defeat  suffered.  Now,  it  was  his  bitterest  antagonist, 
Dr.  Gwin,  now,  it  was  Senator  Foote  that  led  a  fragment- 
ary opposition. 

Broderick  may  have  been  wrong  in  all  these  fiery 
political  struggles.  Ambition  of  every  description  has 
its  selfish  side,  at  which  attacks  can  be  made,  and  the 
citadel  of  its  success  forced.  But  the  tenacity  of  the 
man  had  something  so  honest  about  it,  so  frank  and 
glorious,  that  we,  who  sit  and  ponder  to-day  over  the 
battle  which  the  single-hearted  hero  carried   on — the 


DAVID   C.   BRODERICK.  391 

harshness,  the  vindictiveness,  and  the  hates  of  which 
have  hardly  yet  been  healed — cannot  but  feel  rejoiced  at 
the  final  success  that  crowned  Broderick  in  1856  with 
senatorial  honors. 

In  March,  1857,  he  took  his  seat  in  the  Senate.  The 
early  months  of  Broderick' s  senatorial  career  were  vexed 
with  troubles  as  to  the  distribution  of  patronage  on  the 
Pacific  coast.  He  was  virtually  divested  of  the  influence 
which  he  should  have  wielded  at  Washington,  backed,  as 
he  was,  by  so  fair  a  support  to  employ  in  the  interests  of 
the  Buchanan  administration,  then  struggling  to  maintain 
an  undivided  party  more  Southern  in  its  affection  than 
practicable  in  its  projects.  The  political  enemies  who 
had  been  defeated  in  California  were  entrenched  in  the 
Capitol.  To  them,  the  ground  was  familiar.  Their  leader 
was  conversant  with  every  nook  and  corner  from  which 
place  or  profit  might  be  acquired  for  his  adherents; 
while  Broderick  stood  alone,  coldly  received  by  the 
Government,  and  utterly  unable  to  do  that  for  his  friends 
and  party  which  a  senator  elected  as  he  had  been  would 
be  entitled  to  expect.  In  short,  the  power  of  official 
recommendation,  without  which  a  United  States  Senator 
is  little  more  than  a  member  of  a  grandiloquent  debating 
society,  had  been  snatched  from  Broderick  by  the  ad- 
ministration, and  delivered  entirely  and  exclusively  to 
Senator  Gwin  and  the  party  whose  exponent  he  was. 

Mr.  Broderick  differed  from  the  administration  upon 
the  great  issue  at  that  time  between  the  two  divisions  of 
the  Democratic  party.  He  was  an  advocate  of  the  doc- 
trine or  dogma  of  popular  territorial  sovereignty  as 
enunciated  by  Mr.  Douglas.  The  wisdom  of  that  theory 
has  never  been  tested.  It  is  not  for  us  to  say  that  its 
expounders  were  correct  in  whole  or  in  part ;  nor,  on  the 
other  hand,  has  the  fiercest  opponent  the  logical  privilege 
to  proclaim  it  false.  The  Gordian  knot  has  since  been 
rudely  sundered  by  the  civil  war;  and  it  is  useless  to-day 
to  follow  out  the  strands  and  measure  the  strength  and 
tortuousness  of  every  filament. 

To  us,  Mr.  Douglas  and  Mr.  Broderick  can  be  nothing 
but  prophets,  uninspired  perhaps,  but  honest,  who  cried 


392  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE'  PACIFIC. 

aloud,  whose  words  were  not  regarded,  and  whose  pro- 
phetic mission  was  assailed  with  a  bitterness  and  violence 
that  succeeding  years  should  hasten  to  forget. 

Though  unsupported  by  friends  or  party,  Mr.  Brod- 
erick  won  the  national  respect  in  his  short  career  in  the 
Senate.  It  is  pleasant  to  find  the  patriarchal  Seward  on 
the  one  hand,  and  the  fiery  Toombs  on  the  other,  join  in 
frank  commendations  of  their  young  colleague's  character 
when  the  resolutions  of  respect  for  his  memory  were  in- 
troduced at  the  next  session. 

He  returned  to  California  to  renew  the  battle  which 
his  enemies  now  backed  by  administration  patronage, 
waged  against  him. 

There  is  a  physical  sort  of  fervor  about  a  Californian 
political  campaign.  The  materiality  of  the  daily  life  of 
the  Pacific  seems  to  swell  and  writhe  about  the  forensic 
disputants.  Force  claims  its  place  as  an  element  of  the 
fiery  logic ;  and  words  are  rather  the  damascene  flowers 
upon  the  sabre  than  the  steel  itself. 

It  was  such  a  canvass  that  Broderick  undertook  in 
1859.  It  was  an  abnormal  excitement  that  at  that  time 
drove  forth  his.  every  utterance  in  defence  of  his  views 
on  the  question^  of  the  day. 

A  thorough  gymnast  wrought  up  to  a  pitch  of  physical 
excitement  feels  but  imperfectly  the  scratches  and  bruises 
that  to  an  unhealthy  frame  are  serious  injuries.  He 
gives  and  takes  severe  blows  that  are  misprised,  because 
his  exuberant  health  will,  he  knows,  bring  a  rapid 
healing. 

To  the  political  advocate,  who  steps  trained  and 
warned  upon  the  platform  to  struggle  for  ambitious  grati- 
fication, the  same  kind  of  indiff*erence  should  be  expected 
morally.  The  antagonist  who  comes  up  at  each  fresh 
encounter  with  no  smile  on  his  face,  and  with  rancor 
growing  in  his  bosom,  violates  the  laws  of  the  political 
ring,  and  should  be  ruled  out. 

Broderick  was  abused  in  the  harshest  manner  by  his 
political  opponents.  Expressions  of  contempt  were 
showered  on  him  with  a  disregard  for  any  personal 
feelings  or  personal  purity  that  he  might  have  claimed. 


DAVID   C.    BRODERICK.  393 

On  the  24th  of  June,  1859,  the  Hon.  David  S.  Terry, 
then  the  senior  Judge  on  the  bench  of  the  Supreme 
Court,  delivered  a  speech  at  Sacramento,  eulogistic  of 
the  Buchanan  party  and  its  principles,  and  claiming  it 
and  them  as  the  only  really  Democratic  and  consistent 
organization,  followed  with  a  sharp  criticism  of  the  Re- 
publican party;  and  animadverting  to  the  Douglas  party 
in  the  State,  used  the  following  language: 

What  other  party  have  we  opposed  to  us?  A  miserable  remnant 
of  a  faction  sailing  under  false  colors,  trj^ng  to  obtain  votes  under 
false  pretences.  They  have  no  distinction:  they  are  entitled  to  none. 
They  are  the  followers  of  one  man — the  personal  chattels  of  a  single 
individual  whom  they  are  ashamed  of.  They  belong,  body  and 
breeches,  to  David  C.  Broderick.  They  are  yet  ashamed  to  ac- 
knowledge their  master,  and  are  calling  themselves,  forsooth,  Douglas 
Democrats,  when  it  is  known — w^ell  known  to  them  as  to  us — that 
the  gallant  senator  from  Illinois,  whose  voice  has  always  been  heard 
in  the  advocacy  of  Democratic  principles,  who  is  not  now  disunited 
from  the  Democratic  party,  has  no  affiliation  with  them,  no  feeling 
in  common  with  them. 

When  Broderick  read  this  speech  at  the  table  of  the 
International  Hotel,  he  was  hurt  at  the  contemptuous 
tone  in  which  he  himself  was  alluded  to  as  the  party 
leader;  and  in  the  presence  of  the  assembled  company 
gave  way  to  a  burst  of  bitterness  as  to  Judge  Terry,  from 
whom  he  had  expected  a  kinder  mode  of  expression.  Mr. 
D.  W.  Perley,  a  partner  of  Terry's,  took  up  the  defence 
of  his  friend,  and  offered  to  challenge  Broderick,  who, 
in  a  note,  refused  a  hostile  meeting  with  Mr.  Perley, 
or  any  one  else,  until  after  the  political  campaign  was 
ended. 

The  political  canvass,  in  which  Broderick  and  his  ad- 
herents were  unsuccessful,  was  closed ;  but  unfortunately 
the  hasty  and  violent  remarks  made  by  Broderick,  when 
stung  by  Judge  Terry's  sneer,  were  not  forgotten. 

On  the  8th  of  September,  1859,  Judge  Terry  wrote 
to  Broderick,  referring  to  language  used  by  him  at  the 
International  Hotel  two  months  previously.  This  note 
to  Perley,  declining  a  meeting  until  the  campaign  was 
over,  had  been  published,  and  the  time  having  elapsed, 
Judge  Terry  took  the  earliest  opportunity  to  demand, 


394  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

through  his  friend  Calhoun  Benham^  a  retraction  of  the 
offending  remarks. 

To  this  letter,  Mr.  Broderick  made  immediate  answer, 
requesting  particular  mention  of  the  language  deemed 
offensive,  in  order  to  prevent  future  misrepresentation. 

A  letter  followed  from  Judge  Terry,  stating  that  the 
remarks  alluded  to  were  in  substance  as  follows:  ^^  I  have 
heretofore  considered  and  spoken  of  Judge  Terry  as  the  only 
honest  man  on  the  Supreme  Court  Bench ^  but  I  now  take  it  cdl 
hackr  The  retraction  of  language  calculated  to  reflect 
upon  his  character  as  an  officer  or  a  gentleman  was  again 
demanded  by  Judge  Terry. 

To  this  Broderick  replied  that  his  words  were  occa- 
sioned by  offensive  allusions  concerning  him  made  by 
Judge  Terry  in  the  convention  at  Sacramento,  and  that 
as  nearly  as  possible  the  language  he  (Broderick)  used 
was  as  follows:  '"^During  Judge  Terry's  incarceration  hy  the 
Vigilance  Committee^  I  paid  two  hundred  dollars  a  iveek  to  sup- 
port a  newspaper  in  his  defence.  I  have  also  stated,  heretofore, 
that  I  considered  him  the  only  honest  man  on  the  Supreme  Bench, 
hut  I  take  it  all  hack^  Ko  retraction  was  made,  and  he 
added  that  Judge  Terry  himself  was  the  proper  one  to 
decide  whether  this  language  afforded  grounds  for  offence. 

This  letter  was  followed  by  one  from  Judge  Terry, 
demanding,  through  his  friend  Mr.  Benham,  the  satisfac- 
tion usual  among  gentlemen.  Mr.  Broderick  named  Hon. 
J.  C.  McKibbin  and  D.  D.  Colton  as  his  friends  on  the 
occasion,  and  the  terms  of  the  meeting  were  arranged. 

On  the  12th  of  September,  they  met  at  the  Lake 
House  Ranch,  near  Laguna  Merced,  about  six  miles  from 
San  Francisco,  and  were  arrested.  No  offence  having  as 
yet  been  committed.  Police  Judge  Coon  released  the 
parties,  and  the  meeting  took  place  the  next  day,  near 
the  same  locality. 

Some  sixty  or  seventy  persons  witnessed  the  duel. 
The  morning  was  a  clear,  bright,  sunny  one,  and  a  little 
after  six  o'clock  both  parties  arrived  on  the  spot. 

Mr.  Broderick  was  attended  by  Hon.  J.  C.  McKibbin 
and  D.  D.  Colton,  his  seconds,  and  Dr.  Loehr  as  surgeon; 
while  Judge  Terry  was  accompanied  by  Calhoun  Benham 


DAVID   C.   BRODERICK.  395 

and  Col.  Thomas  Hayes  as  seconds,  and  Drs.  Hammond 
and  Aylette  as  his  surgeons. 

Both  seemed  in  good  spirits,  standing  apart  in  con- 
versation with  their  attendants.  The  weapons  used  were 
eight-inch  Belgium  pistols,  both  set  with  hair-triggers, 
and  the  distance  marked  off  ten  paces.  In  pursuance 
of  the  arrangements  of  the  day  before,  the  choice  of 
ground  belonged  to  Mr.  Broderick  and  the  selection  of 
the  pistols  to  Judge  Terry. 

When  the  articles  of  the  meeting  were  first  drawn 
up,  it  was  objected  to  on  the  part  of  Judge  Terry  that 
the  word  'Tire!"  was  not  to  be  followed  by  the  usual 
''One — Two — Three!"  but  by  simply  the  words  "  One — 
Two!"  The  friends  of  Broderick,  however,  insisted  upon 
this  article  remaining  as  it  was,  and  the  point  was  carried. 

The  code  dudio  being  read  aloud,  the  contestants  took 
their  places.  While  Broderick' s  position  seemed  careless 
and  somewhat  awkward,  that  of  his  adversary  was  rather 
studied  and  his  manner  cooler. 

Just  before  seven  o'clock,  the  words,  "Fire! — One! 
Two!"  were  spoken.  Broderick  raised  his  weapon,  but 
it  exploded  before  he  could  take  aim,  probably  owing  to 
the  delicate  touch  of  the  hair-trigger,  the  ball  from  his 
pistol  striking  the  ground  only  four  or  five  paces  in  ad- 
vance of  where  he  stood. 

A  moment  later,  Judge  Terry  fired,  the  ball  from  his 
pistol  striking  Broderick  full  in  the  right  breast,  causing 
him  to  fall  before  his  seconds  could  reach  him. 

He  was  taken  to  the  house  of  his  friend,  L.  Haskell, 
Esq.,  at  Black  Point,  and  visited  there  by  many  friends. 
The  best  of  medical  attention  could  do  little  for  him. 
His  sufferings  were  great,  and  about  nine  o'clock  of 
Friday  morning,  September  16th,  he  died. 

All  the  various  Courts,  Federal,  State,  and  Municipal, 
adjourned  upon  hearing  of  the  death  of  David  C.  Brod- 
erick. 

The  feeling  throughout  the  city  and  the  State  was 
intense,  and  many  public  men  paid  tribute  to  the  dis- 
tinguished senator's  memory  by  eloquent  words  of  praise 
and  regret. 


396  REPEESENTATIYE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

The  committee  having  in  charge  the  arrangements 
connected  with  the  funeral,  refused  the  kind  offer  of 
General  Haven  to  furnish  a  military  escort,  deeming  it 
better  that  the  ceremonies  should  be  strictly  of  a  civic 
character.  His  body  lay  until  his  burial  in  the  Union 
Hotel  on  the  Plaza,  and  was  visited  by  almost  every 
citizen,  and  shown  marks  of  respectful  attention  by  all. 

The  funeral  took  place  on  the  afternoon  of  Sunday, 
the  18th  of  September.  Col.  Baker  was  selected  to 
deliver  the  funeral  eulogy,  and  Broderick's  remains  were 
escorted  to  Lone  Mountain  Cemetery  by  an  immense 
assemblage,  who  showed  the  feelings  of  deeply  seated 
regard  and  sorrow.  The  city  was  draped  in  mourning, 
the  flags  on  buildings  and  in  the  harbor  were  at  half-mast, 
and  every  thing  wore  a  solemn  and  impressive  appearance. 

The  train  of  events  which  seemed  to  make  the  death 
of  the  Senator  the  irresistible  necessity  of  the  tragedy, 
pointed  to  Dr.  Gwin  rather  than  to  Judge  Terry  as  his 
veritable  opponent.  It  was  not  on  the  same  plane  with 
Terry  that  Broderick's  acts  were  projected.  The  offence 
rankling  between  them  was  an  episode  rather  than  the 
absorbing  emotion ;  and  the  frightful  unities  of  the 
drama  would  seem  to  have  been  better  met,  had  Gwin 
rather  than  Terry  pointed  the  fatal  pistol  that  finished 
the  career  of  our  hero. 

The  duel  that  closed  the  life  of  Broderick  has  been 
the  theme  of  much  political  and  personal  scandal,  affect- 
ing the  characters  and  standing  of  the  prominent  men  of 
the  ultra  wing  of  the  party  of  which  Broderick  was  the 
partial  expositor  in  the  State  of  California. 

The  minutest  details  of  the  combat  have  been  sifted 
to  find  material  for  exciting  paragraphs  in  the  journals; 
and  even  a  sort  of  superstitious  glamor  has  been  thrown 
about  the  remote  cause  of  the  strife. 

But  the  issues  can  be  narrowed  down  to  a  few  propo- 
sitions :  It  is  wrong  to  engage  in  duels ;  Broderick  com- 
mitted the  ^vrong;  it  is  wrong  to  use  language  for  which 
nothing  but  a  personal  meeting  can  atone;  Broderick 
used  such  language.  Hp  attempted  to  evade  the  meeting 
with  a  dignity,  far  different  from  cowardice;  but  failing 


DAVID   C.    BRODERICK.  397 

to  do  SO,  went  out  like  the  brave  heart  that  he  was,  fear- 
lessly, seriously,  with  no  mean  repinings,  no  mawkish 
sentiment,  no  driveling  about  the  morality  of  the  act, 
and  met  his  death,  dealt  under  the  code  which  he  himself 
had  recognized,  and  at  other  times  invoked.  Whether 
one  pattern  of  pistol  has  a  mechanical  advantage  or  disad- 
vantage over  another;  whether  one  combatant  has  a 
steadier  eye  or  hand  or  more  or  less  skill  than  another, 
are  questions  that  cannot  be  raised  on  the  field  of 
rencontre  without  turning  prudence  into  something  worse. 
Broderick  scorned  to  raise  such  quibbles  himself,  and 
this  is  no  place  for  their  discussion. 

A  little  more  generosity  in  pressing  home  the  offence, 
a  little  less  anxiety  for  the  vulgar  satisfaction  of  the  day, 
a  grander  peering  into  futurity  to  see  the  dim  reflection 
that  the  years  threw  back  of  the  motives  and  feelings  that 
then  urged  him  in  his  course,  would  have  cast  no  stain 
and  given  ground  for  no  mean  imputation  on  the  personal 
character  or  courage  of  his  antagonist.  The  bitter  poli- 
tical strife  that  followed  in  after  years,  between  North 
and  South,  would  have  swallowed  up  in  a  more  catholic 
struggle  the  feverish  hostilities  that  in  those  times  ex- 
ploded fitfully  in  California,  between  the  impetuous 
spirits  of  either  faction. 

The  bravery  which  led  Broderick  out  to  a  meeting,  from 
which  it  was  the  sum  of  possibilities  that  he  could  not 
return  alive,  was  the  same  fire  that  a  few  years  after  blazed 
in  the  heart  of  one  of  his  eulogists  at  the  fatal  cannon's 
mouth  on  the  field  of  battle.  It  is  the  spirit  that  has 
made  the  Californian  the  boyish  hero  among  his  peers  of 
the  other  States — reckless  of  his  risks,  ready  to  resent 
injuries,  and  obedient  to  the  law,,  only  when  that  law  was 
in  keeping  with  its  original  purpose,  and  not  the  foi^tifi- 
cation  planted  about  greater  wrong. 

Broderick  was,  in  the  broadest  sense  of  the  hackneyed 
phrase,  a  representative  man.  In  him  could  be  marked 
the  effect  of  the  fullest  liberty  upon  an  Irish  intellect. 
The  weight  of  ignorance,  poverty,  and  sorrow  once  flung 
from  him,  there  was  no  mark  of  the  shackles  left.    There 


398  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE  PACIFIC. 

was  as  much  of  the  sovereignty  of  will  about  his  mental 
actions  as  ever  developed  from  a  royal  cradle. 

Sprung  from  a  race  from  whom  prosperity,  mental 
improvement,  and  creed  almost  have  been  snatched, 
instead  of  being  a  cringing  follower  in  the  wake  of  others' 
errors,  Broderick  was  more  thoughtful  of  the  interests  of 
true  republicanism,  more  considerate  and  unswerving  in 
his  regard  for  the  interests  of  his  fellows,  a  nobler  citizen 
in  fact  than  more  pretentious  children  of  the  Republic, 
w^ho  used  the  lap  of  the  national  mother  as  a  ground 
whereon  to  battle  for  their  toys  of  theories — unsubstantial 
products  of  fallacious  sentiment.  He  acknowledged  all 
the  defects  and  failings  which  could  possibly  be  ascribed 
to  him;  and  having  thus  stripped  himself  of  every  conceit 
and  pretension  not  in  accordance  with  the  character  upon 
which  he  was  to  build  his  life,  and  having  accepted  the 
position  into  which  circumstances  had  thrown  him,  with 
all  its  asperities,  he  marched  forward  upon  a  career  of 
pure  glory,  closed  as  in  the  days  of  ancient  chivalry  on 
the  field  of  battle. 


Delivered  over  the  dead  body  of  David  C.  Broderick, 
AT  Portsmouth  Square,  San  Francisco,  on  the  18th 
of  September,  1859. 

Citizens  of  California: 

A  Senator  lies  dead  in  our  midst  !  He  is  wrapped  in  ;i  bloody 
shroud,  and  we,  to  whom  his  toils  and  cares  were  given,  a:e  about 
to  bear  him  to  the  place  appointed  for  all  the  living.  It  is  not  fit 
that  such  a  man  should  pass  to  the  tomb  unheralded;  it  i^  not  fit 
that  such  a  Life  should  steal  unnoticed  to  its  close;  it  is  not  fit  that 
such  a  death  should  call  forth  no  rebuke,  or  be  followed  by  no 
public  lamentation.  It  is  this  conviction  which  impels  the  gather- 
ing of  this  assemblage.  We  are  here  of  every  station  and  pursuit, 
of  every  creed  and  character,  each  in  his  capacity  of  citizen,  to  swell 
the  mournful  tribute  which  the  majesty  of  the  people  offers;  to  the 
unreplying  dead.     He  lies  to-day  surrounded  by  little  of  funeral 


DAVID   C.  B RODERICK.  399 

pomp.  No  banners  droop  above  the  bier,  no  melancholy  music 
floats  upon  the  reluctant  air.  The  hopes  of  high-hearted  friends 
droop  like  fading  flowers  upon  his  breast,  and  the  struggling  sigh 
compels  the  tear  in  eyes  that  seldom  weep.  Around  him  are  those 
who  have  known  him  best  and  loved  him  longest  ;  who  have  shared 
the  triumph,  and  endured  the  defeat.  Near  him  are  the  gravest 
and  noblest  of  the  State,  possessed  by  a  grief  at  once  earnest  and' 
sincere  ;  while  beyond,  the  masses  of  the  people  whom  he  loved, 
and  for  whom  his  life  was  given,  gather  like  a  thunder-cloud  of 
swelling  and  indignant  grief. 

In  such  a  presence,  fellow-citizens,  let  us  linger  for  a  moment 
at  the  portals  of  the  tomb,  whose  shadowy  arches  vibrate  to  the 
public  heart,  to  speak  a  few  brief  words  of  the  man,  of  his  life,  and 
of  his  death. 

Mr.  Broderick  was  born  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  in  1819. 
He  was  of  Irish  descent,  and  of  obscure  and  respectable  parentage; 
he  had  little  of  early  advantages,  and  never  summoned  to  his  aid 
a  complete  and  finished  education.  His  boyhood  and  his  early 
manhood  were  passed  in  the  City  of  New  York,  and  the  loss  of  his 
father  early  stimulated  him  to  the  efibrts  which  maintained  his  sur- 
viving mother  and  brother,  and  served  also  to  fix  and  form  his 
character  even  in  his  boyhood.  His  love  for  his  mother  was  his 
first  and  most  distinctive  trait  of  character,  and  when  his  brother 
died — an  early  and  sudden  death — the  shock  gave  a  serious  and  re- 
flective cast  to  his  habits  and  his  thoughts,  which  marked  them  to 
the  last  hour  of  his  life. 

He  was  always  filled  with  pride,  and  energy,  and  ambition — his 
pride  was  in  the  manliness  and  force  of  his  character,  and  no  man 
had  more  reason  than  he  for  such  pride.  His  energy  was  manifest 
in  the  most  resolute  struggles  with  poverty  and  obscurity,  and  his 
ambition  impelled  him  to  seek  a  foremost  place  in  the  great  race  for 
honorable  power. 

Up  to  the  time  of  his  arrival  in  California,  his  life  had  been 
passed  amid  events  incident  to  such  a  character.  Fearless,  self-re- 
liant, open  in  his  enmities,  warm  in  his  friendships,  wedded  to  his 
opinions,  and  marching  directly  to  his  purpose  through  and  over 
all  opposition,  his  career  was  checkered  with  success  and  defeat : 
but  even  in  defeat  his  energies  were  strengthened  and  his  character 
developed.  When  he  reached  these  shores,  his  keen  observation 
taught  him  at  once  that  he  trod  a  broad  field,  and  that  a  higher 
career  was  before  him.  He  had  no  false  pride:  sprung  from  a 
people  and  of  a  race  whose  vocation  was  labor,  he  toiled  with  his 
own  hands,  and  sprang  at  a  bound  from  the  workshop  to  the 
legislative  hall.  From  that  time  there  congregated  around  him 
and  against  him  the  elements  of  success  and  defeat — strong  friend- 
ships, bitter  enmities,  high  praise,  malignant  calumnies — but  he 
trod  with  a  free  and  a  proud  step  that  onward  path  which  has  led 
him  to  glory  and  the  grave. 

It  would  be  idle  for  me,  at  this  hour  and  in  this  place,  to  speak 
of  all  that  history  with  unmitigated  praise :  it  will  be  idle  for  his 


4.00  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

enemies  hereafter  to  deny  his  claim  to  noble  virtues  and  high  pur- 
poses. "When,  in  the  Legislature,  he  boldly  denounced  the  special 
legislation  which  is  the  curse  of  a  new  country,  he  proved  his  cour- 
age and  his  rectitude.  When  he  opposed  the  various  and  some- 
times successful  schemes  to  strike  out  the  salutary  provisions  of  the 
Constitution  which  guarded  free  labor,  he  was  true  to  all  the  bet- 
ter instincts  of  his  life.  When,  prompted  by  ambition  and  the  ad- 
miration of  his  friends,  he  first  sought  a  seat  in  the  Senate  of  the 
United  States,  he  aimed  by  legitimate  effort  to  attain  the  highest 
of  all  earthly  positions,  and  failed  with  honor. 

It  is  my  duty  to  say  that,  in  my  judgment,  when  at  a  later  pe- 
riod he  sought  to  anticipate  the  Senatorial  election,  he  committed 
an  error  which  I  think  he  lived  to  regret.  It  would  have  been  a 
violation  of  the  time  principles  of  representative  government,  which 
no  reason,  public  or  private,  could  justify,  and  could  never  have  met 
the  permanent  approval  of  good  and  wise  men.  Yet,  while  I  say 
this  over  his  bier,  let  me  remind  you  of  the  temptation  to  such  an 
error,  of  the  plans  and  reasons  which  prompted  it — of  the  many 
good  pur^ooses  it  was  intended  to  effect.  And  if  ambition,  "  the 
last  infirmity  of  noble  minds,"  led  him  for  a  moment  from  the  bet- 
ter path,  let  me  remind  you  how  nobly  he  regained  it. 

It  is  impossible  to  speak  within  the  limits  of  this  address,  of  the 
events  of  that  session  of  the  Legislature  at  which  he  was  elected  to 
the  Senate  of  the  United  States;  but  some  things  should  not  be 
passed  in  silence  here.  The  contest  betw^een  him  and  the  present 
Senator  had  been  bitter  and  personal.  He  had  triumphed.  He 
had  been  wonderfully  sustained  by  his  friends,  and  stood  confess- 
edly ' '  the  first  in  honor  and  the  first  in  place. ''  He  yielded  to  an 
appeal  made  to  his  magnanimity  by  his  foe.  If  he  judged  unwisely, 
he  has  paid  the  forfeit  well.  Never  in  the  history  of  political  war- 
fare has  any  j^ublic  man  been  so  pursued;  never  has  malignity  so 
exhausted  itself. 

Fellow-citizens!  the  man  whose  body  lies  before  you  was  your 
Senator.  From  the  moment  of  his  election  his  character  has  been 
maligned,  his  motives  attacked,  his  courage  impeached,  his  pat- 
riotism assailed.  It  has  been  a  system  tending  to  one  end:  and 
the  end  is  here.  What  was  his  crime  ?  Review  his  history — con- 
sider his  public  acts — weigh  his  private  character — and  before  the 
grave  encloses  him  forever,  judge  between  him  and  his  enemies! 

As  a  man — to  be  judged  in  his  private  relations — who  was  his 
superior?  It  was  his  boast,  and  amid  the  general  license  of  a  new 
country^  it  was  a  proud  one,  that  his  most  scrutinizing  enemy  could 
fix  no  single  act  of  immorality  upon  him!  Temperate,  decorous, 
self-restrained,  he  had  passed  through  all  the  excitements  of  Cali- 
fornia, unstained.  No  man  could  charge  him  with  broken  faith  or 
violated  trust;  of  habits  simple  and  inexpensive,  he  had  no  lust  of 
gain.  He  overreached  no  man's  weakness  in  a  bargain,  and  with- 
held from  no  man  his  just  dues.  Never,  in  the  history  of  the  State, 
has  there  been  a  citizen  who  has  borne  public  relations,  more  stain- 
less in  all  respects  than  he. 


DAVID   C.  BRODERICK.  401 

But  it  is  not  by  this  standard  he  is  to  be  judged.  He  was  a 
public  man,  and  his  memory  demands  a  public  judgment.  What 
was  his  public  crime?  The  answer  is  in  his  own  words :  ' '/  die  be- 
cause I  loas  opposed  to  a  corrupt  administration,  and  the  extension  of 
slavery. "  Fellow-citizens,  they  are  remarkable  words,  uttered  at  -a 
very  remarkable  moment:  they  involve  the  history  of  his  Sena- 
torial career,  and  of  its  sad  and  bloody  termination . 

When  Mr.  Broderick  entered  the  Senate,  he  had  been  elected 
at  the  beginning  of  a  Presidential  term  as  the  friend  of  the  Presi- 
dent elect,  having  undoubtedly  been  one  of  his  most  influential  sup- 
2)orters.  There  were  unquestionably  some  things  in  the  exercise 
of  the  appointing  power  which  he  could  have  wished  otherwise; 
but  he  had  every  reason  to  remain  wdth  the  Administration,  which 
could  be  supposed  to  weigh  with  a  man  in  his  position.  He  had 
heartily  maintained  the  doctrine  of  Popular  Sovereignty,  as  set 
forth  in  the  Cincinnati  Platform,  and  he  never  wavered  in  his  sup- 
port till  the  day  of  his  death.  But  when  in  his  judgment  the  Pres- 
ident betrayed  his  obligations  to  his  party  and  countiy — when,  in 
the  whole  series  of  acts  in  relation  to  Kansas,  he  proved  recreant  to 
his  pledges  and  instructions — when  the  whole  power  of  the  Ad- 
ministration was  brought  to  bear  upon  the  legislative  branch  of 
the  Government,  in  order  to  force  Slavery''  upon  an  unwilling  peo- 
ple— then,  in  the  high  performance  of  his  duty  as  a  Senator,  he 
rebuked  the  Administration  by  his  voice  and  his  vote,  and  stood 
by  his  principles.  It  is  true,  he  adopted  no  half-way  measures. 
He  threw  the  whole  weight  of  his  character  into  the  ranks  of  the 
Opposition.  He  endeavored  to  arouse  the  people  to  an  indignant 
sense  of  the  iniquitous  tyranny  of  federal  power,  and,  kindling  with 
the  contest,  became  its  fiercest  and  firmest  opponent.  Fellow-cit- 
izens, whatever  may  have  been  your  political  predilections,  it  is 
impossible  to  repress  your  admiration,  as  you  review  the  conduct 
of  the  man  who  lies  hushed  in  death  before  you.  You  read  in  his 
history  a  glorious  imitation  of  the  great  popular  leaders  who  have 
opposed  the  despotic  influences  of  power  in  other  lands,  and  in 
our  own.  When  John  Hampden  died  on  Chalgrove  field,  he  sealed 
his  devotion  to  popular  liberty  with  his  blood.  The  eloquence  of 
Fox  found  the  sources  of  its  inspiration  in  his  love  for  the  peojDle. 
W^hen  Senators  conspired  against  Tiberius  Gracchus,  and  the  Tri- 
bune of  the  peojDle  fell  beneath  their  daggers,  it  was  jDOwer  that 
prompted  the  crime  and  demanded  the  sacrifice.  Who  can  doubt, 
if  your  Senator  had  suiTendered  his  free  thought,  and  bent  in  sub- 
mission to  the  rule  of  the  Administration — who  can  doubt  that  in- 
stead of  resting  on  a  bloody  bier,  he  would  have  this  day  been  re- 
posing in  the  inglorious  felicitude  of  Presidential  sunshine  ? 

Fellow-citizens,  let  no  man  suppose  that  the  death  of  the  emi- 
nent citizen  of  whom  I  speak  was  caused  by  any  other  reason  than 
that  to  which  his  own  words  assign  it.  It  has  been  long  foreshad- 
owed— it  was  predicted  by  his  friends — it  was  threatened  by  his 
enemies :  it  was  the  consequence  of  intense  i^olitical  hatred.  His 
death  was  a  political  necessity,  poorly  veiled  beneath  the  guise  of  a 

26 


402  REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

private  quarrel.  Here,  in  his  own  State,  among  those  who  mtness- 
ed  the  late  canvass,  who  know  the  contending  leaders,  among  those 
who  know  the  antagonists  on  the  bloody  ground — here,  the  public 
conviction  is  so  thoroughly  settled,  that  nothing  need  be  said.  Test- 
ed by  the  correspondence  itself,  there  was  no  cause,  in  morals,  in 
honor,  in  taste,  by  any  code,  by  the  custom  of  any  civilized  land, 
there  was  no  cause  for  blood.  Let  me  repeat  the  story — it  is  as 
brief  as  it  is  fatal  :  A  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  descends  into  a 
political  convention — it  is  just,  however,  to  say  that  the  occasion 
was  to  return  thanks  to  his  friends  for  an  unsuccessful  support..  In 
a  speech  bitter  and  personal  he  stigmatized  Senator  Broderick  and 
all  his  friends  in  words  of  contemptuous  insult.  When  Mr.  Brod- 
erick saw  that  speech,  he  retorted,  saying  in  substance,  that  he  had 
heretofore  spoken  of  Judge  Terry  as  an  honest  man,  but  that  he 
now  took  it  back.  When  inquired  of,  he  admitted  that  he  had  so 
said,  and  connected  liis  words  with  Judge  Terry's  speech  as  prompt- 
ing them.  So  far  as  Judge  Terry  personally  was  concerned,  this 
was  the  cause  of  mortal  combat ;  there  was  no  other. 

In  the  contest  which  has  just  terminated  in  the  State,  Mr. 
Broderick  had  taken  a  leading  part ;  he  had  been  engaged  in  con- 
troversies very  personal  in  their  nature,  because  the  subjects  of  pub- 
lic discussion  had  involved  the  character  and  conduct  of  many  pub- 
lic and  distinguished  men.  But  Judge  Terry  was  not  one  of  these. 
He  was  no  contestant ;  his  conduct  was  not  in  issue;  he  had  been 
mentioned  but  once  incidentally — in  reply  to  his  own  attack — and, 
except  as  it  might  be  found  in  his  peculiar  traits  or  peculiar  fitness, 
there  was  no  reason  to  suppose  that  he  could  seek  any  man's  blood. 
When  William  of  Nassau,  the  deliverer  of  Holland,  died  in  the  pre- 
sence of  his  wife  and  children,  the  hand  that  struck  the  blow  was 
not  nerved  by  private  vengeance.  When  the  fourth  Henry  passed 
unharmed  amid  the  dangers  of  the  field  of  Ivry,  to  perish  in  the 
streets  of  his  capital  by  the  hand  of  a  fanatic,  he  did  not  seek  to 
avenge  a  private  grief.  An  exaggerated  sense  of  personal  honor — a 
weak  mind  with  choleric  passions,  intense  sectional  prejudice  unit- 
ed with  great  confidence  in  the  use  of  arms — these  sometimes  serve 
to  stimulate  the  instruments  which  accomplish  the  deepest  and  dead- 
liest purpose. 

Fellow-citizens  !  One  year  ago  to-day  I  performed  a  duty,  such 
as  I  perform  to-day,  over  the  remains  of  Senator  Ferguson,  who 
died  as  Broderick  died,  tangled  in  the  meshes  of  the  code  of  honor. 
To-day  there  is  another  and  more  eminent  sacrifice.  To-day  I  re- 
new my  protest ;  to-day  I  utter  yours.  The  code  of  honor  is  a  de- 
lusion and  a  snare  ;  it  palters  with  the  hope  of  a  true  courage  and 
binds  it  at  the  feet  of  crafty  and  cruel  skill.  It  surrounds  its  victim 
with  the  pomp  and  grace  of  the  procession,  but  leaves  him  bleed- 
ing on  the  altar.  It  substitutes  cold  and  deliberate  preparation  for 
courageous  and  manly  impulse,  and  arms  the  one  to  disarm  the 
other  ;  it  may  prevent  fraud  between  practiced  duelists  who  should 
be  forever  without  its  pale,  but  it  makes  the  mere  "trick  of  the 
weapon  "  superior  to  the  noblest  cause  and  the  truest  courage.     Its 


DAVID   C.   BRODERICK.  403 

pretence  of  equality  is  a  lie — it  is  equal  in  all  the  form,  it  is  iinjust 
in  all  the  substance — the  habitude  of  arms,  the  early  training,  the 
frontier  life,  the  border  war,  the  sectional  custom,  the  life  of  leisure, 
all  these  are  advantages  which  no  negotiation  can  neutralize,  and 
which  no  courage  can  overcome. 

But,  fellow-citizens,  the  protest  is  not  only  spoken,  in  your  words 
and  in  mine — it  is  written  in  indelible  characters ;  it  is  written  in 
the  blood  of  Gilbert,  in  the  blood  of  Ferguson,  in  the  blood  of 
Broderick ;  and  the  inscription  will  not  altogether  fade. 

With  the  administration  of  the  code  in  this  particular  case,  I  am 
not  here  to  deal.  Amid  passionate  grief,  let  us  strive  to  be  just.  I 
give  no  currency  to  rumors  of  which  personally  I  know  nothing  ; 
there  are  other  tribunals  to  which  they  may  well  be  referred,  and 
this  is  not  one  of  them.  But  I  am  here  to  say,  that  whatever  in  the 
code  of  honor  or  out  of  it  demands  or  allows  a  deadly  combat 
where  there  is  not  in  all  things  entire  and  certain  equality,  is  a 
prostitution  of  the  name,  is  an  evasion  of  the  substance^  and  is  a 
shield,  blazoned  with  the  name  of  Chivalry,  to  cover  the  malignity 
of  murder. 

And  now,  as  the  shadows  turn  toward  the  East,  and  we  prepare 
to  bear  these  poor  remains  to  their  silent  resting-place,  let  us  not 
seek  to  repress  the  generous  pride  which  prompts  a  recital  of  noble 
deeds  and  manly  virtues.  He  rose  unaided  and  alone ;  he  began 
his  career  without  family  or  fortune,  in  the  face  of  difficulties  ;  he 
inherited  poverty  and  obscurity :  he  died  a  Senator  in  Congress, 
having  written  his  name  in  the  history  of  the  great  struggle  for  the 
rights  of  the  people  against  the  despotism  of  organization  and  the 
corruption  of  power.  He  leaves  in  the  hearts  of  his  friends  the 
tenderest  and  the  proudest  recollections.  He  was  honest,  faithful, 
earnest,  sincere,  generous  and  brave ;  he  felt  in  all  the  great  crises 
of  his  life  that  he  was  a  leader  in  the  ranks,  that  it  was  his  high  du- 
ty to  uphold  the  interests  of  the  masses ;  that  he  could  not  falter. 
When  he  returned  from  that  fatal  field,  while  the  dark  wing  of  the 
Archangel  of  Death  was  casting  its  shadows  upon  his  brow,  his 
greatest  anxiety  was  as  to  the  performance  of  his  duty.  He  felt 
that  all  his  strength  and  all  his  life  belonged  to  the  cause  to  which 
he  had  devoted  them.  *'  Baker,"  said  he — and  to  me  they  were  his 
last  words —  **  Baker,  when  I  was  struck  I  tried  to  stand  firm,  but 
the  blow  blinded  me,  and  I  could  not  '*  I  trust  it  is  no  shame  to  my 
manhood  that  tears  blinded  me  as  he  said  it.  Of  his  last  hour  I 
have  no  heart  to  speak.  He  was  the  last  of  his  race ;  there  was  no 
kindred  hand  to  smooth  his  couch  or  wipe  the  death  damp  from  his 
brow  ;  but  around  that  dying  bed  strong  men,  the  friends  of  early 
manhood,  the  devoted  adherents  of  later  life,  bowed  in  irrepressible 
grief,  *'and  lifted  up  their  voices  and  wept" 

But,  fellow-citizens,  the  voice  of  lamentation  is  not  uttered  by 
private  friendship  alone — the  blow  that  struck  his  manly  breast  has 
touched  the  heart  of  a  people,  and  as  the  sad  tidings  spread,  a 
general  gloom  prevails.  Who  now  shall  speak  for  California? — who 
be  the  interpreter  of  the  wants  of  the  Pacific  coast  ?    Who  can  ap- 


404  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

peal  to  the  communities  of  the  Atlantic  who  love  free  labor  ?  "Who 
can  speak  for  masses  of  men  with  a  passionate  love  for  the  classes 
from  whence  he  sprung?  Who  can  defy  the  blandishments  of 
power,  the  insolence  of  office,  the  corruption  of  administrations? 
What  hopes  are  buried  with  him  in  the  grave ! 

**  Ah  !  who  that  gallant  spirit  shall  resume, 
Leap  from  Eurotas'  bank,  and  call  us  from  the  tomb  ?  " 

But  the  last  word  must  be  spoken,  and  the  imperious  mandate 
of  Death  must  be  fulfilled.  Thus,  O  brave  heart !  we  bear  thee  to 
thy  rest.  Thus,  surrounded  by  tens  of  thousands,  we  leave  thee  to 
the  equal  grave.  As  in  life,  no  other  voice  among  us  so  rung  its 
trumpet  blast  upon  the  ear  of  freemen,  so  in  death  its  echoes  will 
reverberate  amid  our  mountains  and  valleys,  until  truth  and  valor 
cease  to  appeal  to  the  human  heart. 

Good  friend  !  true  hero  !  hail  and  farewell. 


ISAAC  N.  ROOP 

By  Judge  y^   T.  jBi^ucE. 


ISAAC  Newton  Roof  was  born  in  Carroll  County,  Mary- 
land, on  the  thirteenth  day  of  March,  1822.  His 
parents  were  natives  of  New  York  city,  and  of  German 
origin.  They  lived  for  some  time  in  the  State  of  Penn- 
sylvania, and  in  the  year  1790,  removed  to  the  State  of 
Maryland.  Isaac  was  reared  on  a  farm,  and  though  his 
father  was  wealthy,  he  enjoyed  such  limited  opportuni- 
ties for  education  that,  when  he  left  home  at  the  age  of 
eighteen,  he  could  scarcely  write  his  own  name.  This 
defect,  however,  was  in  due  time  quite  remedied,  through 
the  instrumentality  of  a  Miss  Nancy  Gardiner,  a  graduate 
of  the  Transylvania  College,  with  whom,  in  December, 
1840,  he  established  at  once  the  twofold  relation  of  hus- 
band and  pupil.  Under  her  tutorage  he  received  a  thor- 
ough English  education,  and  laid  the  foundation  work 
for  that  period  of  usefulness  that  succeeded  to  him  in  his 
later  years. 

Miss  Nancy  Gardiner  was  born  in  Pennsylvania, 
December  22d,  1822.  In  the  same  year  of  her  marriage, 
she,  with  her  husband,  moved  to  Ashland  County,  Ohio. 
Ten  years  later  she  died,  leaving. her  husband  with  three 
children,  two  sons  and  a  daughter.  Both  of  these  sons 
enlisted  in  the  service  of  their  country,  during  the  late 
war,  and  participated  in  the  North-Western  campaign 
under  Gen.  Rosecrans.  The  3^oungest^  Isaiah  Roop,  was 
severely  wounded  at  the  terrible  battle  of  Stone  River, 
and  died  from  its  effects  the  following  year.  The  re- 
maining son,  John  Y.  Roop,  is  now  living  in  the  State  of 


406  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Iowa.  The  daughter,  Mrs.  Susan  Arnold,  came  to  Cali- 
fornia in  the  year  1862.  She  was  much  beloved  by  her 
father,  and  has  stood  by  his  side  to  cheer  him  and  ad- 
minister to  his  comfort  since  the  day  of  her  meeting  him 
here.  She  resides  in  Susanville,  Cal.,  in  the  home  made 
beautiful  by  the  hand  of  her  illustrious  father.  On  the 
ninth  day  of  September,  1850,  and  but  a  few  months  after 
the  loss  of  his  wife,  Gov.  Roop  started  for  California. 
He  arrived  in  San  Francisco  on  the  eighteenth  day  of 
October  of  the  same  year,  and  in  June  following  went  to 
Shasta  to  keep  a  public  house.  His  first  three  years  in 
California  were  spent  in  Shasta  County,  in  farming  and 
trading.  During  this  period  he  also  held  the  situation  of 
Postmaster  and  School  Commissioner.  He  had  accumu- 
lated in  that  time  upwards  of  fifteen  thousand  dollars, 
worth  of  property,  but  in  June,  1853,  lost  it  all  by  fire. 
Stripped  of  everything  but  an  unconquerable  will,  and 
being  of  an  adventurous  disposition,  he  turned  his  back 
upon  civilized  life,  and  journeying  across  the  Sierras, 
took  up  his  abode  in  Honey  Lake  Valley — at  that  time 
a  long  distance  from  any  settlement,  and  solely  inhabited 
by  Indians.  Here  he  located  the  land  upon  which  the 
city  of  Susanville  now  stands,  built  a  saw  mill  near  by, 
and  continued  to  reside  here  up  to  the  day  of  his  death, 
February  14th,  1869.  During  his  residence  in  Honey 
Lake  Valley  he  was  engaged  in  lumbering,  farming  and 
trading,  filled  many  offices  of  profit  and  trust,  and,  to  a 
considerable  extent,  followed  the  practice  of  the  law. 
The  beautiful  valley  first  settled  by  him  has  grown  up 
into  a  flourishing  county^  and  the  little  village  which  he 
laid  out  has  become  a  large  and  prosperous  commercial 
town,  and  the  county  seat  of  Lassen  County.  Honey 
Lake  Valley,  as  lately  as  the  year  1858,  was  considered 
by  its  settlers  as  a  part  of  Utah  Territory.  Becoming  in- 
dignant at  the  insolence  and  petty  oppressions  of  the 
Mormons,  these  early  settlers,  with  other  residents  of 
western  Utah,  resolved,  in  the  year  1859,  to  cut  loose 
from  all  political  communication  with  a  people  they  so 
heartily  despised.  Accordingly,  a  convention  was  called 
in  July  of  that  year,  which,  having  drafted  a  Constitution 


ISAAC  N.   ROOP.  407 

for  the  new  territory  formed  out  of  this  part  of  Utah, 
and  christened  Nevada,  the  same  was  adopted  by  the  peo- 
ple, and  an  election  held  in  pursuance  of  its  provisions 
for  choosing  a  Governor  and  other  territorial  officers. 

At  this  election,  held  on  the  seventh  of  September, 
Isaac  N.  Roop  was  chosen  Provisional  Governor  of  the 
proposed  territory  by  nearly  a  unanimous  vote.  The 
first  Legislature  elected  in  this  new  territory  met  and 
organized  in  the  town  of  Genoa,  Carson  Valley,  on  the 
fifteenth  of  December,  1859.  0.  K.  Pierson,  of  Carson 
city,  was  elected  Speaker,  H.  S.  Thompson,  Clerk,  and 
the  Hon.  J.  A.  McDougal,  Sergeant-at-Arms.  To  this 
Legislature  Governor  Roop  delivered  his  first  Message. 
The  Governor  adjourned  the  Legislature  to  the  first  Mon- 
day in  January  following,  whereof  he  informed  the  people 
by  proclamation.  In  that  proclamation  Governor  Roop 
gave  the  reasons  of  the  people  of  the  proposed  territory 
for  the  organization  of  a  provisional  government.  The 
proclamation  declared  that  ^^  under  Mormon  rule  they  had 
no  protection  for  life,  limb,  or  property.  They  had  no 
Courts  or  County  organizations  except  those  controlled 
by  the  sworn  satellites  of  the  Salt  Lake  oligarchy.  Their 
political  rights  were  entirely  at  the  will  of  a  clique  com- 
posed of  those  who  were  opposed  to  the  first  principles 
of  our  Constitution  and  the  freedom  of  the  ballot  box. 
Under  these  circumstances  all  endeavored  to  secure  relief 
from  these  impositions,  and  believing  that  a  Provisional 
Government  would  best  assure  protection  of  life,  limb, 
and  property,  an  election  was  held  and  all  necessary 
arrangements  made  for  the  formation  of  temporary  gov- 
ernment until  Congress  should  insure  justice  and  pro- 
tection." 

A  short  time  after,  U.  S.  District  Judge  Cradlebaugh 
succeeded  in  establishing  his  Court  in  the  new  territory; 
a  new  Delegate  to  Congress,  in  the  person  of  John  J. 
Musser,  had  been  elected  and  dispatched  to  Washington; 
extensive  mines  were  discovered  in  the  Carson  Yalley, 
which  caused  an  influx  of  population  wholly  unexpected 
at  the  time  of  the  meeting  of  the  convention — and  only 
a  portion  of  the  members  of  the  first  Legislature  were 


408  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

present  at  its  first  meeting — ^wherefore,  in  the  language 
of  the  proclamation,  ''I,  Isaac  N.  Roop,  Governor  of  the 
Provisional  Territorial  Government  of  Nevada  Territory, 
believing  it  to  be  the  wish  of  the  people  still  to  rely  upon 
the  sense  of  justice  of  Congress,  and  that  it  will  this 
session,  relieve  us  from  the  numerous  evils  to  which  we 
are  subjected,  do  proclaim  the  session  of  the  Legislature 
adjourned  until  the  first  Monday  in  January,  1860;  and 
call  upon  all  good  citizens  to  support  with  all  their  ener- 
gies the  laws  and  Government  of  the  United  States." 
During  his  gubernatorial  term  many  wise  measures  were 
adopted  for  the  better  security  of  the  early  settlers  in 
western  Utah,  and  quite  extensive  campaigns  carried  on 
against  the  hostile  Indians  all  along  the  border.  He  be- 
came very  intimate  with  Gen.  Lander,  and  was  joined  by 
him  in  many  of  his  efforts  for  the  suppression  of  Indian 
outrages  upon  the  early  settlers. 

After  the  formation  of  the  Territory  of  Nevada,  in 
1861,  Governor  Roop  was  elected  to  the  Territorial  Sen- 
ate. There  he  acquitted  himself  honorably  and  won  the 
lasting  esteem  of  the  entire  population  of  the  Territo- 
ry. In  1862  he  became  the  leading  spirit  in  a  move- 
ment to  join  Honey  Lake  Yalley  with  the  Territory 
of  Nevada.  For  three  or  four  years  previous  thereto 
the  boundary  line  between  California  and  Nevada  had 
been  in  dispute.  During  that  time  many  of  the  citizens 
of  Honey  Lake  Valley  acquiesced  in  the  jurisdiction 
of  Nevada.  The  Legislature  of  the  Territory  passed  a 
bill  fixing  the  boundaries  of  a  new  county  to  be  called 
Roop,  so  as  to  include  Honey  Lake  Yalley,  having  its 
county  seat  at  Susanville.  A  conflict  of  jurisdiction  al- 
most immediately  ensued.  The  Nevada  Legislature  there- 
upon appointed  three  commissioners,  R.  M.  Ford,  Jas.  W, 
Nye  and  I.  N.  Roop,  to  present  its  memorial  to  the  Cali- 
fornia Legislature,  with  a  view  to  obtain  a  change  of  the 
boundary  line  in  accordance  with  the  recommendation 
of  Congress.  The  Legislature  of  the  State  of  California 
refused  to  grant  the  request,  and  two  years  afterward 
Governor  Roop  had  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  Honey 
Lake  and  its  adjacent  sister,  Long  Valley,  erected  into  a 


ISAAC   N.    ROOP.  409 

separate,  independent  county  government.  If  he  could 
not  succeed  in  placing  his  home  where  it  naturally  and 
properly  belonged,  he  had  been  successful  in  making  it 
independent  of  the  snows  and  summits  of  the  Sierras. 
With  this  he  was  partially  content,  as  previous  to  this 
time  the  county  seats  of  the  Counties  claiming  jurisdic- 
tion over  Honey  Lake  Yalley  were  separated  from  it  by 
the  Sierra  Nevada  Mountains,  which  were  impassable 
two-thirds  of  the  year.  At  an  early  day,  as  soon  as  a 
Post  Office  was  established  in  Susanville,  he  was  ap- 
pointed its  Postmaster,  which  position  he  held  up  to 
the  day  of  his  death. 

In  politics.  Governor  Hoop  belonged  to  the  Whig 
party  as  long  as  it  had  an  existence.  In  1860  he  voted 
for  Stephen  A.  Douglas.  At  the  outbreak  of  the  civil 
war  in  America  he  heartily  espoused  the  Union  cause,  and 
was  identified  with  every  movement  among  his  neigh- 
bors, to  render  aid  and  comfort  to  the  soldier  in  the  field. 
In  1864  he  supported  Lincoln,  both  with  his  voice  and 
his  vote.  In  1865  he  was  elected  to  the  office  of  District 
Attorney  for  the  County  of  Lassen,  receiving  the  entire 
Democratic  vote  and  nearly  two-thirds  of  the  Republican 
vote.  In  1867  he  was  reelected  without  opposition, 
From  his  earliest  settlement  in  the  country  he  took  a 
leading  part  in  all  measures  tending  to  the  welfare  of  its 
citizens,  and  has  had  much  to  do  toward  shaping  the  affiiirs 
of  this  coast.  He  was  a  man  of  enlarged  mind  and  noble 
charities,  true  to  his  friendships,  kind  in  his  disposition, 
and  manly  in  his  character.  He  possessed  the  elements 
of  popularity  in  a  high  degree,  being  frank,  sociable  and 
courteous,  and  of  unbounded  hospitality.  Naturally  he 
w^as  a  man  of  quick  perception,  sensitive,  high-minded, 
and  of  approved  courage.  Though  owner  at  various  times 
of  large  property,  and  surrounded  with  a  rude  abundance, 
such  had  ever  been  his  liberality  in  dealing,  and  so  nu- 
merous his  kind  offices,  that  at  no  time  was  his  condition 
one  of  financial  independence.  He  was,  moreover,  a  man 
of  fine  physical  development,  standing  nearly  six  feet 
high,  and  w^ell  proportioned.  He  possessed  regular  fea- 
tures, and  an  intelligent,  cheerful,  good-natured  counte- 


410  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

nance.  His  florid  complexion  and  light-blue  eyes  in- 
dicated his  active  temperament  and  love  of  out-door 
pursuits.  He  died  at  his  residence  in  Susanville,  Feb- 
ruary fourteenth,  1869,  after  an  illness  of  six  days.  He 
was  buried  with  Masonic  honors,  and  the  following  ex- 
tract from  the  resolutions  passed  by  the  Lodge  of  which 
he  was  a  member  shows  the  esteem  in  which  he  was  held, 
and  finds  an  echo  in  every  heart  that  knew  him. 

"  In  the  death  of  Isaac  N.  Koop  the  Masonic  Order  has  lost  an 
ardent  friend,  one  ever  attached  to  its  precepts,  one  whose  heart 
and  hand  were  ever  open  to  the  melting  appeals  of  charity,  whose 
benevolence,  knowing  no  bounds,  seemed  to  embrace  the  vast  sea 
of  humanity,  whose  generous  will  extended  itself  for  the  good  of 
Masonry,  and  whose  enlarged  mind  was  ever  impressed  with  the 
controlling  tenets,  Charity,  Belief  and  Brotherly  Love.  The  be- 
nevolent impulses,  the  charitable  disposition,  the  generous  prompt- 
ings— emanations  of  a  noble  heart — the  persevering  will  and  manly 
attributes  that  adorned  the  intellect  and  character  of  Isaac  N. 
Boop,  will  ever  be  deeply  esteemed,  fondly  cherished  and  remem- 
bered by  his  brethren  of  Lassen  Lodge. " 


THOMAS  H.  SELBY 

J3y    yriLLIAM    y.    ]^ELLS. 


EXPERIENCE  has  shown  that  municipal  affairs  are  never 
so  faithfully  administered  as  when  removed  from  the 
control  of  professed  politicians.  A  familiarity  with  party 
tactics,  which  has  generally  been  deemed  the  stepping- 
stone  to  National  as  well  as  State  official  preferment,  is 
not  essential  to  the  well-being  of  a  city  which  requires 
especially  the  exercise  of  common  sense,  economy,  and 
executive  ability.  The  qualities  indispensable  to  the 
management  of  a  large  commercial  firm  are  not  less 
demanded  in  the  governing  head  of  a  community,  and  the 
most  successful  rulers  of  American  cities  have  been  those 
who  were  chosen  from  among  business  men,  irrespective 
of  politics,  and  solely  with  reference  to  honesty  and  capa- 
bility. Elected  by  the  right  influences,  such  men  have 
usually  been  popular  while  in  office,  and,  retiring,  have 
carried  with  them  the  confidence  and  esteem  of  their 
fellow-citizens. 

An  illustration  of  this  is  found  in  the  present  Mayor 
of  San  Francisco,  who  has  been  for  twenty  years  the  head 
of  one  of  her  first  commercial  houses.  Mr.  Selby  was  born 
and  educated  in  New  York  city.  He  was  for  some  time  a 
clerk  with  A.  T.  Stewart,  having  entered  that  establish- 
ment at  the  same  time  with  the  afterwards  celebrated 
Cyrus  W.  Field.  At  the  age  of  nineteen  he  was  elected, 
after  an  exciting  campaign,  a  director  of  the  Mercantile 


412  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Library  Association,  of  which  he  and  his  young  friend 
Field  were  members. 

On  attaining  his  majority  he  commenced  business  for 
himself,  in  New  York,  and  at  twenty-five  was  a  partner 
in  an  establishment  with  upwards  of  forty  employes. 
After  a  few  years  the  house,  yielding  to  the  financial 
pressure  of  that  period,  suspended ;  and  its  affairs  having 
been  temporarily  arranged,  Mr.  Selby,  taking  upon  him- 
self the  entire  burthen  of  its  debts,  joined  the  tide  of 
humanity  then  setting  towards  the  Pacific  Coast,  with  the 
sole  and  avowed  object  of  paying  off  the  liabilities  of  the 
firm. 

Animated  by  this  laudable  purpose,  the  young  man 
landed  in  San  Francisco  in  August,  1849,  and  true  to 
his  resolve  he  devoted  the  proceeds  of  his  business  to 
settling  up  the  indebtedness.  The  profits  of  three  years 
of  lucrative  speculation  and  trade  were  thus  consumed. 
Like  thousands  of  others,  he  had  originally  intended  to 
return  as  soon  as  this  obligation  had  been  fulfilled ;  but, 
as  it  became  evident  that  San  Francisco  was  destined  to 
be  one  of  the  world's  emporiums — a  grand  commercial 
centre,  with  every  inducement  for  a  permanent  location — 
he  decided  to  cast  his  lot  in  California.  In  the  summer 
of  1850  he  erected  a  substantial  brick  building — still 
standing — on  the  north "  side  of  California  street,  near 
Montgomery,  which  was  one  of  the  earliest  of  its  kind  in 
the  city  and  attracted  much  attention  at  that  time  as  a 
costly  novelty  in  architecture.  Here  he  established  the 
present  house  of  Thomas  H.  Selby  &  Co.,  and  commenced 
the  importation  of  metals  and  merchandise,  which  he  has 
followed  until  the  present  time,  under  the  same  name 
and  style,  in  connection  with  his  New  York  partner, 
Mr.  P.  Naylor.  One  of  the  most  active  members  of  the 
First  Presbyterian  Society  of  San  Francisco,  he  was 
especially  influential  in  building  their  church  on  Stockton 
street,  near  Broadway,  which  was  commenced  in  the  fall 
of  1850.  Services  had  originally  been  held  in  a  tent,  the 
Rev.  Albert  Williams  officiating.  The  edifice,  completed 
early  in  1851,  was  destroyed  by  the  great  fire  of  that 
year,  and  was  rebuilt  in  the  same  place.     Many  of  the 


THOMAS   H.    SELBY.  413 

leading  members,  Mr.  Selby  among  them,  withdrew  sub- 
sequently and  built  the  well  known  Calvary  Church,  on 
Bush  street,  which  in  turn  has  disappeared  before  the 
march  of  improvement.  His  own  building  was  in  the 
desolating  track  of  the  fire  of  1851,  but  was  saved  by  the 
exertions  of  Mr.  Selby,  who,  with  a  few  others,  shut  him- 
self up  there,  and  fought  the  destroyer  with  water 
obtained  from  a  well  dug  in  the  basement  for  just  such 
an  emergency.  For  some  time  the  iron  shutters  were  red 
hot,  and  the  party  would  fain  have  escaped  from  their 
perilous  position  had  it  been  possible ;  but  by  the  courage 
of  desperation  the  building  was  preserved,  and  the  whirl- 
wind of  flame  passed  on. 

The  preferences  of  Mr.  Selby  have  usually  been  averse 
to  politics;  but  nevertheless,  his  great  personal  popularity 
and  evident  availability  have  repeatedly  been  made  use 
of  to  draw  him  into  public  life,  though  always  against  his 
own  earnest  protest.  In  each  instance  he  has  been 
triumphantly  elected,  and  has  filled  the  requirements  of 
the  position  with  the  same  conscientious  fidelity  that  has 
ever  characterized  his  actions.  The  one  objection  that 
his  friends  could  name  was,  that  prior  to  election,  he 
invariably  retired  from  active  participation  in  the  contest, 
and  left  the  issue  with  the  public,  shunning  all  contact 
with  politicians,  and  failing  to  exert  even  the  legitimate 
amount  of  electioneering  influence  sanctioned  by  political 
usage.  His  tastes,  avoiding  the  thankless  turmoil  of 
public  office,  leaned  rather  to  the  quiet  of  private  life, 
and  the  rivalries  of  trade  and  commercial  pursuits. 

In  April,  1851,  he  was  elected  Assistant  Alderman  of 
the  Fifth  Ward,  and  took  his  seat  in  the  Board  a  few 
days  after  the  conflagration  above  mentioned.  As  a 
member  of  the  Common  Council,  his  name  appears  on 
many  committees,  and  the  record  shows  that  he  was  one 
of  the  most  industrious  members  of  the  Board.  By  the 
terms  of  the  new  City  Charter,  then  lately  gone  into 
operation,  the  officers  chosen  at  the  annual  election  in 
September  of  that  year,  were  installed  soon  after ;  Mayor 
Brenham  giving  place  to  Dr.  Harris,  and  the  old  Board 
vacating  for  the  newly  elected  one,  by  decision  of  the 


414  REPRESENTATR^E   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Supreme  Court,  thus  limiting  their  official  term  to  about 
six  months. 

Released  from  public  duties,  Mr.  Selby  gladly  re- 
turned to  his  more  legitimate  business;  from  which 
retirement  he  was  again  brought  forth  in  the  fall  of  the 
following  year ;  when,  against  his  strongest  protestations, 
he  was  nominated  as  Alderman  of  the  Fifth  Ward,  and 
was,  of  course,  elected  by  a  great  majority.  He  was  at  that 
time  an  ''  Old  Line  Whig,"  belonging  to  a  party  of  glorious 
memories,  including  in  its  numbers  the  most  illustrious 
men  of  America,  but  destined,  after  the  defeat  of  Scott 
and  the  death  of  Clay  and  Webster,  to  decline  and  dis- 
appear; many  of  its  adherents,  like  Mr.  Selby,  eventually 
joining  the  Democracy  and  imparting  a  leaven  of  strength 
and  patriotism  to  that  organization.  Mr.  Selby' s  name 
appeared  on  nearly  all  the  tickets  in  the  campaign  of 
1852— the  "Regular  Whig,"  the  '^Independent  Whig," 
the  '^ People's  Favorite,"  the  "Independent,"  and  the 
"Union,"  (the  latter  composed  about  equally  of  Whigs 
and  Democrats.)  jSTational,  State,  county  and  city  candi- 
dates, from  President  and  Yice-JPresident  down  to  the 
smallest  local  officers,  were  on  the  same  ticket,  and  were 
voted  for  together.  In  San  Francisco  alone  there  were 
eighty-seven  offices  to  be  filled,  and  for  these  there  were 
one  hundred  and  eighty  candidates  in  the  field.  Seven 
out  of  eight  wards  returned  Whig  Aldermen — a  note- 
worthy fact,  considering  that  the  State  and  county  went 
Democratic — the  incoming  Legislature  having  a  majority 
for  that  party  of  thirty-four  on  joint  ballot.  This  result 
in  the  election  of  local  officers  was  due  to  the  great  num- 
ber who  voted  the  Independent  ticket;  and  when,  years 
afterwards,  a  similar  influence  elected  Mr.  Selby  to  the 
Mayoralty,  it  furnished  the  second  instance  of  his  having 
been  chosen  to  office  by  a  spontaneous  popular  movement. 
On  the  12th  of  November,  1852,  the  new  government 
was  duly  installed,  with  C.  J.  Brenham — elected  for  the 
second  time — as  Mayor.  The  previous  City  Council  had 
the  summer  before  purchased  the  Jenny  Lind  theatre 
(the  present  City  Hall)  in  defiance  of  the  wishes  of  the 
people  and  the  veto  of  Mayor  Harris ;  and  the  incoming 


THOMAS  H.    SELBY.  415 

administration  held  their  first  session  there.  The  county 
of  San  Francisco  at  that  time  extended  to  San  Francis- 
quito  Creek,  its  southern  boundary — the  present  county 
of  San  Mateo  having  been  subsequently  created.  The 
municipal  government  proper  consisted  of  the  Boards  of 
Aldermen  and  Assistant  Aldermen,  while  the  affairs  of 
the  county  were  especially  managed  by  a  Board  of  Super- 
visors, (composed  partly  of  the  Board  of  Aldermen)  of 
whom  the  Mayor  was  the  presiding  officer.  The  newly 
elected  Common  Council  entered  upon  their  duties  with 
a  curious  array  of  complications  to  contend  against.  A 
wide  range  of  local  business  and  city  improvements,  some 
beneficial  and  others  concealing  corrupt  jobs,  demanded 
prompt  action  to  aid  or  defeat.  Yenal  legislation  at  Sac- 
ramento, to  an  alarming  extent,  threatened  the  prosperity 
of  the  city.  The  gigantic  State  Prison  appropriation; 
the  City  Slip  Bill;  the  infamous  Extension  Project,  in- 
cluding a  raid  upon  the  whole  tidal  front  of  the  city,  and 
a  change  in  the  grading  from  the  highlands  to  the  bay; 
the  State  printing  expenditures,  in  the  payment  of  which 
San  Francisco  was  largely  interested ;  the  Stamp  Act  and 
Notary  Public  bills — all  designed  as  exactions  upon  the 
property-holders  of  that  city,  required  clear-headed  ability 
and  the  devotion  of  time  to  counteract  their  baneful 
tendency.  Other  perplexing  subjects  were  soon  to  arise, 
such  as  an  amended  or  new  city  charter,  and  the  removal 
of  the  State  capitol.  The  outgoing  City  Council  had 
left  affairs  in  the  worst  possible  condition,  and  the  press 
teemed  with  denunciations  of  their  acts.  Gas  and  wharf 
contracts,  originating  in  barefaced  favoritism,  and  a  waste- 
ful use  of  the  public  money,  both  by  needless  contracts 
and  appropriations,  formed  the  burthen  of  the  articles. 

"  There  can  be  no  doubt,"  said  a  writer  of  that  time, 
^^  that  during  the  three  years  past,  there  has  been  more 
corruption,  fraud,  and  dishonesty  in  the  municipal  affairs 
of  this  city  than  in  any  other  city  in  the  world.  Ignor- 
ance, inability,  and  stupidity,  have  only  been  varied  with 
crime,  fraud,  and  corruption.  More  wicked  schemes  for 
personal  advancement,  without  the  flimsiest  pretext  of 
desire  for  the  public  good,  have  passed  our  City  Council 


416  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

tlian  any  other  modern  legislative  body  in  Christendom. 
City  hospital — Merchant  Street — grading  and  planking 
operations — old  city  hall — funding  scheme — water  lot 
legislation — Colton  grants — Jenny  Lind  theatre — each 
and  every  one  calls  to  the  mind  of  our  old  citizens  entire 
chapters  of  scheming  iniquity.  *  *  A  city  entering  upon 
its  career  with  a  richer  patrimony  than  any  other  of 
modern  times,  having,  under  the  Mexican  law,  a  landed 
property  that  would  have  enriched  a  State,  is  not  only 
destitute  of  ornaments  and  conveniences,  but  is  saddled 
with  a  debt  of  one  million  six  hundred  thousand  dollars, 
to  anticipate  our  revenues  and  grind  us  with  taxes  for 
twenty  years  to  come."  The  ingenious  Peter  Smith  and 
Limantour  swindles,  alarming  the  community  by  their 
magnitude,  and  involving  the  titles  to  most  of  the  valu- 
able real  estate  in  San  Francisco,  were  rearing  their  men- 
acing heads  in  the  courts.  Property  was  insecure,  and 
the  public  mind  harassed  by  doubts,  uncertainties,  and 
conflicting  interests. 

Upon  the  organization  of  the  Board  of  Aldermen,  Mr. 
Selby  was  placed  on  most  of  the  hard-working  com- 
mittees, of  some  of  which  he  was  chairman,  and  his  busi- 
ness talent  and  industry  were  manifest  throughout  his 
official  term.  At  that  time  the  Board  of  Education  was 
composed  of  the  Mayor,  one  member  from  each  branch 
of  the  Common  Council,  and  two  citizens  at  large.  Mr. 
Selby  represented  this  body  from  the  Board  of  Aldermen, 
and  found  ample  scope  for  the  advancement  of  his  favorite 
subject  of  free  public  schools.  The  Board  of  Education 
had  the  appointing  of  a  Superintendent  of  Public  In- 
struction. Mr.  Selby  was  also  especially  active  in  re- 
organizing the  Police  Department,  a  work  to  which  he 
applied  himself  at  once  upon  taking  his  seat.  When 
the  Extension  Bill  was  passed  by  the  Assembly  in  April, 
1853,  and  the  five  Whig  members  of  the  San  Francisco 
delegation  resigned  their  seats,  he  supported  them  in  their 
appeal  to  the  people,  and  gave  all  his  energies  to  reelecting 
them  as  an  expression  of  the  public  sentiment.  And  the 
record  of  those  early  days  points  to  him  invariably  as  a 
steadfast  and  watchful  friend  of  the  best  interests  of  the 


THOMAS   H.    SELBY,  417 

city,  as  he  was  ever  the  uncompromising  opponent  of  all 
schemes  for  depleting  the  public  treasury. 

One  of  his  first  acts  in  the  Board  of  Aldermen  was 
in  defence  of  the  city  to  the  lands  covered  by  the  Peter 
Smith  claim.  Soon  after  the  induction  of  the  new  Com- 
mon Council  into  office,  the  Supreme  Court  rendered  its 
famous  decision  adverse  to  the  city  in  the  above-named 
suit.  Public  feeling  ^vas  wrought  up  to  the  highest  pitch. 
Mayor  Brenham  called  an  extraordinary  meeting  of  the 
Council,  and  in  a  brief  message  set  forth  the  danger  and 
recommended  immediate  action.  Alderman  Selby  submit- 
ted a  series  of  resolutions,  which  were  published  in  all  the 
newspapers,  warning  innocent  parties  against  purchasing 
titles  to  property  under  the  Peter  Smith  sales,  and  giving 
notice  that  all  titles  acquired  under  them  would  be  con- 
tested by  the  city  government.  The  City  Attorney  was 
also  empowered  to  act  in  conjunction  with  the  attorney 
of  the  Board  of  Commissioners  of  the  Funded  Debt,  in 
adopting  measures  for  contesting  the  validity  of  the  title 
acquired  under  the  sale.  This  was  the  commencement 
of  the  memorable  Peter  Smith  contest,  which,  after  several 
years  of  costly  litigation,  resulted  in  favor  of  the  munici- 
pality. Alderman  Selby  was  the  first  to  strike  officially  at 
the  ordinance  imposing  a  tax  upon  every  passenger  ar- 
riving at  San  Francisco,  and  introduced  a  resolution  for 
its  repeal.  He  was  also  instrumental  in  procuring  the 
donation  by  the  city,  in  1853,  of  a  lot  at  Rincon  Point  to 
the  United  States  Government,  as  a  site  for  a  Marine 
Hospital,  and  was  the  originator  of  the  idea  of  establish- 
ing ''  fire  limits,"  within  which  wooden  buildings  could 
not  be  erected.  His  influence  against  bad  legislation  was 
not  confined  to  local  affairs,  but  numerous  iniquitous 
schemes ;  among  them,  the  deep-laid  plot  for  dividing  the 
State,  found  in  him  a  powerful  and  persistent  enemy. 
Had  that  measure  been  successful,  slavery  would  have 
been  introduced  into  the  proposed  new  State  of  ^'  Southern, 
California,"  and  the  evil  effects  experienced  during  the 
late  civil  Avar.  In  short,  Mr.  Selby  brought  to  the 
management  of  public  affairs  the  same  shrewdness,  sound 
judgment,  and  economy  that  he  exerted  in  his  own:  and 
27 


418  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

his  official  record  bears  the  closest  examination  for  the 
vigor  and  administrative  ability  which  distinguished  it 
throughout.  As  at  that  time  he  consented  with  reluct- 
ance to  engage  in  politics,  so  in  1869,  it  was  only  after 
repeated  solicitation,  by  the  various  nominating  conven- 
tions, to  which  were  added  the  urgent  appeals  of  personal 
friends,  that  he  was  finally  induced  to  become  a  candidate 
for  the  mayoralty,  it  being  generally  conceded  that  no 
other  citizen  combined  so  completely  the  elements  of  suc- 
cess. The  result  was  in  keeping  with  the  past,  and 
showed  that  his  personal  popularity  was  not  overestimated. 
He  was  elected  in  the  face  of  a  combination  of  partizan 
engineering  and  moneyed  influence  such  as  has  rarely  been 
concentrated  against  a  political  candidate.  Never  defeated 
before  the  people,  the  stamp  of  success  seems  to  be  inevi- 
tably affixed  to  every  thing  with  which  he  is  associated. 
Seventeen  years  before,  when  he  was  elected  Alderman, 
the  city  contained  about  45,000  inhabitants,  and  polled 
8,023  votes:  in  1869,  with  a  population  estimated  at 
about  160,000,  the  vote  was  21,600,  a  falling  off  of  4,000 
from  the  Presidential  vote  of  the  previous  year. 

The  positions  of  honor  and  trust  which  Mr.  Selby  has 
filled  in  mercantile  and  social  life,  it  would  be  difficult 
to  enumerate.  President  of  the  Merchants'  Exchange, 
and  the  first  President  of  the  Industrial  School  Associa- 
tion, he  was  foremost  in  organizing  those  bodies,  and  was 
an  active  member  of  the  committees  that  superintended 
the  erection  of  the  buildings  for  both.  President  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  Calvary  Church,  and  of  the  City 
College,  a  life  director  of  the  Mercantile  Library  Associa- 
tion, and  an  establisher  and  liberal  supporter  of  two 
seminaries  of  learning  in  San  Mateo  county,  his  name  is 
honorably  connected  with  the  progress  of  enlightenment 
and  education  in  California.  In  a  number  of  instances, 
he  has  been  appointed  executor  of  valuable  estates,  and 
always  without  bonds. 

/with  an  activity  and  healthy  vigor  of  mind  and  body 
which  honors  the  most  exacting  demands  on  their  power 
of  endurance,  Mr.  Selby  systematises  his  time  so  as  to 
transact  a  surprising  amount  of  business.     No  accumula- 


THOMAS  H.    SELBY.  419 

tion  of  labor  seems  to  embarrass  or  annoy  him^  wbile  a 
habit  of  directing  the  efforts  of  others  enables  him  to 
keep  every  part  of  the  complicated  machinery  in  motion 
without  hurry  or  confusion.  Besides  the  establishment 
on  California  street,  which  is  his  financial  headquarters, 
Mr.  Selby  has  branch  stores  at  Marysville  and  Stockton, 
with  their  ramifications  extending  to  all  parts  of  the 
State.  His  Silver  and  Lead  Smelting  Works  at  North 
Beach,  San  Francisco,  which  cost  $100,000  to  erect,  are 
the  means  of  keeping  not  less  than  twenty  mines  in  ope- 
ration in  California,  Nevada,  and  Arizona,  this  being 
their  only  market.  Ores  and  crude  metal,  worth  $150,000, 
may  at  any  time  be  seen  piled  up,  awaiting  reduction  at 
the  works,  which  give  constant  occupation  to  about 
seventy-five  men;  while,  indirectly,  several  hundred 
miners  are  kept  employed  by  this  ready  consumer  of 
the  product  of  their  labor.  Add  to  this  another  branch 
of  industry,  his  San  Francisco  Shot  Tower,  and  some 
idea  may  be  formed  of  the  extent  and  variety  of  his  en- 
gagements. This  establishment  employs  a  large  number 
of  men,  both  at  the  works,  and  in  the  mines  supplying  it 
with  lead.  The  manufacture  of  shot  in  California  is  due 
to  the  energy  and  persistency  of  purpose  of  Mr.  Selby, 
who  commenced  it  amid  manifold  discouragements,  and 
the  general  prediction  of  his  failure  to  compete  with  the 
Eastern  States.  It  has  proved  successful,  however,  and 
nearly  the  whole  Pacific  coast  is  supplied  from  this 
source,  while  a  powerful  impetus  is  given  to  California 
industryTl 

AbrJut  thirty  miles  from  San  Francisco — ^an  hour  and 
a  quarter  by  rail — is  the  country  seat  of  Mr.  Selby — a 
place  of  about  five  hundred  acres,  and  a  model  of  rural 
attractiveness  and  high  cultivation.  The  eye  is  never 
wearied  admiring  the  landscape  of  broad  fields  waving 
with  fertility,  blending  the  richest  foliage,  tropical  in  its 
luxuriance,  with  a  pleasing  diversity  of  grain  and  pasture 
land,  and  the  view  bounded  in  the  distance  by  pictur- 
esque, wood-crowned  hills.  The  estate  produces  an- 
nually from  five  to  ten  thousand  bushels  of  the  cereals, 
and  an  orchard — the  largest  in  San  Mateo  county — ^yields 


420  REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OF   THE  PACIFIC. 

two  thousand  bushels  of  choice  fruits.  Amid  the  continual 
demands  upon  his  time,  Mr.  Selby  finds  leisure  for  a  per- 
sonal supervision  of  this  extensive  property,  which,  for  its 
genial  climate  and  quiet  pastoral  beauty,  is  a  favorite 
resort  after  the  cares  of  the  day,  in  preference  to  his  city 
residence.  Adorned  with  every  appliance  that  art  and 
refined  taste  can  suggest,  this  mansion  is  the  summer  re- 
treat of  the  family,  and  while  its  fortunate  proprietor  may 
felicitate  himself  in  the  contemplation  of  a  successful  and 
honorable  business  career,  he  is  equally  happy  in  the 
companionship  of  that  personal  loveliness  and  amiability 
wdiich,  when  they  grace  the  social  circle,  hallow  and 
endear  the  sacred  name  of  home.  Under  Mr.  Selby,  San 
Francisco  entered  upon  a  new  era  of  prosperity.  Con- 
ciliatory and  popular  in  manners,  liberal  alike  in  theory 
and  practice,  with  a  record  for  integrity  that  has  always 
stood  above  the  breath  of  suspicion,  and  thoroughly  con- 
versant with  the  requirements  of  the  city  where  he  has 
spent  his  best  years,  he  commenced  his  official  duties 
under  the  most  favorable  auspices,  and  his  term  as  Mayor, 
when  reviewed  hereafter,  will  exhibit  the  same  beneficent 
motives  and  practical  intelligence  that  have  hitherto 
guided  his  actions  in  the  walks  of  private  and  public  life. 


JAMES  ISISBET  AJJD  FRANKLIN  TUTHILL. 


IN  the  month  of  August,  1865,  the  San  Francisco  Even- 
ing Bulletin  chronicled  a  loss  which  is  quite  remarka- 
ble in  the  history  of  journalism  on  the  Pacific  coast. 
Two  of  its  proprietors  and  leading  editors,  who  had  done 
much  to  give  the  paper  the  high  character  it  still  main- 
tains, were  lost  to  it  by  death — the  one  by  a  dreadful  ma- 
rine disaster  on  the  northern  coast,  the  other  by  disease  on 
the  eastern  side  of  the  continent,  and  both  within  a  few 
days  of  each  other.  James  Nisbet,  who  was  long  the 
news  and  literary  editor  of  the  paper,  and  who  deserves  a 
place  in  this  work  as  the  first  historian  of  San  Francisco, 
was  lost  at  sea  on  the  steamship  Brother  Jonathan ^  July 
30th,  1865.  This  vessel  was  on  the  way  from  San  Fran- 
cisco to  Victoria,  Y.  I.,  with  almost  two  hundred  souls  on 
board,  when  she  struck  a  sunken  rock  off  St.  George's 
Point,  eight  or  ten  miles  north-west  from  Crescent  City, 
and  went  down  about  forty-five  minutes  afterwards.  All 
on  board  were  lost  except  about  a  score  of  persons. 
Among  the  passengers  who  perished,  besides  Mr.  Nisbet, 
were  Maj.  Gen.  George  W.  Wright,  of  the  United  States 
Army,  and  wife ;  Gen.  A.  C.  Henry,  of  Washington  Ter- 
ritory;  Major  E.  W.  Eddy,  of  the  United  States  Army,  sev- 
eral other  army  and  navy  officers,  and  a  number  of  citi- 
zens of  California  prominent  for  worth  and  talent.  Amid 
the  terrible  scene  transpiring  around  him  at  the  wreck, 
and  with  the  horror  of  sudden  death  staring  him  in  the 
face,  with  hardly  a  possibility  that  it  would  be  averted, 
Mr.  Nisbet  was  calm  and  thoughtful  enough  to  write  out 


422  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

a  will  in  pencil,  and  to  address  notes  of  farewell  to  some 
of  his  friends,  even  remembering  some  children  of  whom 
he  was  fond  by  their  pet  names.  The  act  was  character- 
istic of  his  unselfish  and  courageous  nature.  His  remains 
were  recovered,  brought  to  San  Francisco,  and  interred  in 
Lone  Mountain  Cemetery,  where  rest  those  of  his  former 
associates  on  the  Bulletin — its  founder,  James  King  of 
Wm.,  C.  J.  Bartlett,  and  C.  0.  Gerberding,  who  preceded 
him  a  few  years. 

Mr.  Msbet  was  born  in  Glasgow,  Scotland,  about  the 
year  1817.  His  parents  were  of  high  respectability  and 
considerable  fortune,  and  he  enjoyed  during  youth  every 
desirable  opportunity  for  that  intellectual  training  which 
developed  his  naturally  vigorous  mind  to  form  a  very  use- 
ful character.  On  arriving  at  the  proper  age,  he  chose 
the  profession  of  law,  and  after  graduating,  traveled  over 
the  principal  countries  of  Europe.  Subsequently  he  be- 
came a  partner  in  a  prominent  Glasgow  firm  of  lawyers. 
He  was  more  inclined  to  seek  literary  pursuits  than  to  con- 
tend for  the  rights  of  clients  in  the  legal  tribunals,  and 
always  abstained  from  appearing  as  an  advocate.  His 
strong  tendency  to  literature  is  shown  by  the  fact,  known 
to  only  a  few  intimate  friends,  that  he  was  the  author  of 
an  elaborate  and  meritorious  novel,  published  before  leav- 
ing Scotland,  under  the  title  of  The  Seige  of  Palmyra.  He 
always  cherished  the  purpose  of  devoting  himself  to  some 
literary  work  that  might  give  him  a  permanent  reputation. 
In  about  the  year  1852,  having  previously  lost  a  consid- 
erable property  by  an  unfortunate  investment  in  railroad 
stock,  he  decided  to  seek  a  reparation  of  his  fortune  in 
some  remote  portion  of  the  world,  where  there  might  be 
better  opportunities  for  profitable  personal  exertion  than 
in  his  native  land.  With  this  view  he  first  visited  Austra- 
lia, but  was  disappointed  in  the  aspect  of  affairs  there  pre- 
sented, and  after  spending  a  few  weeks  in  inspecting  the 
gold  mines,  returned  to  England.  A  few  weeks  later  he 
set  sail  for  California,  where  he  arrived  in  November, 
1852.  In  San  Francisco  he  first  found  employment  in 
writing  a  work  historical  and  descriptive  of  this  city — the 
well  known  Annals  of  Sari  Francisco^  in  the  authorship  of 


JAMES  NISBET   AND   FRANKLIN   TUTHILL.  423 

which  Frank  Soule,  Esq.,  and  Dr.  J.  H.  Gihon  were  as- 
sociated, though  Mr.  JN'isbet  did  a  large  part  of  the  work. 
The  writing  for  this  was  very  hasty,  and  he  never  attach- 
ed any  value  to  it,  although  time  is  giving  it  considerable 
interest.  While  engaged  on  the  Annals  his  industry,  dis- 
criminating judgment,  and  power  thoroughly  to  perform 
great  intellectual  labor,  at  once  surprised  and  delighted 
his  employers  and  associates  in  the  book,  one  of  whom, 
Mr.  Soule,  about  the  same  time  became  part  proprietor 
of  a  prominent  daily  newspaper.  The  California  Chronicle^ 
to  which  circumstance  is  due  the  fact  that  Mr.  Nisbet, 
while  still  engaged  on  the  Annals^  was  transferred  to  a 
desk  in  the  editorial  rooms  of  that  paper.  He  continued 
in  that  position  until  March,  1856,  when,  at  the  solicitation 
of  James  King  of  Wm.,  he  accepted  a  higher  position  on  the 
Bulletin^  and  ultimately  became  one  of  its  proprietors. 
For  nine  years  afterward,  until  the  date  of  his  fatal  voy- 
age, he  filled  the  position  of  supervising  editor  of  the 
Bulletin^  evincing  great  industry,  taste,  judgment  and  de- 
votion. He  was  a  purist  in  the  matter  of  selections  and 
language,  a  singularly  independent  critic  in  literature, 
music  and  the  drama,  and  master  of  a  terse,  vigorous  Eng- 
lish style.  His  theory  of  journalism  was  above  passion 
and  personality,  and  conformed  to  the  honorable  rules 
which  regulate  the  intercourse  of  gentlemen.  Although 
he  did  not  write  the  leading  editorials,  and  never  wrote  on 
political  topics  at  all,  confining  his  labors  almost  exclus- 
ively to  the  news  desk  and  the  supervision  of  other  de- 
partments, he  used  his  influence  to  modify  the  asperities 
of  contests  that  the  paper  could  not  avoid.  Puffery  in 
any  degree  found  in  him  a  stern  foe,  and  he  was  almost 
morbidly  sensitive  lest  the  paper  should  be  prostituted  to 
unworthy  uses,  its  reading  columns  made  a  medium  for 
personal  or  business  matters,  or  its  advertising  columns 
opened  to  any  kind  of  impurity.  He  elevated  the  paper 
into  an  ideal  institution,  with  a  strict  code  of  morals  to 
which  all  were  made  to  conform.  In  his  own  character 
he  possessed  the  best  elements  to  maintain  the  peculiar 
authority  he  exercised  in  the  office.  He  led  a  pure  and 
chaste  life,  free  from  every  vice,  and  was  possessed  of  a 


424  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

singularly  robust  constitution.  ^^  His  innate  love  of  justice 
was  so  great  that  no  personal  friendship  could  tempt  him 
to  desert  the  right  or  excuse  a  wrong ;  and  yet  he  loved  his 
friends  with  a  devotion  that  w^as  not  counterbalanced  by 
hatred  for  enemies.  No  journalist  of  this  country  was 
ever  so  continuously  reviled  for  the  faults  or  pretended 
faults  of  others,  and  yet  he  would  not  deviate  in  the  slight- 
est degree  from  the  straight  line  to  seek  redress  for  an  in- 
jury. Those  who  made  themselves  his  enemies  he  wished 
to  forget  and  dismiss  from  recollection.  If  he  had  a 
weakness,  it  was  extreme  sensitiveness  as  to  his  personal 
honor.  He  freely  confessed  that  he  could  never  clothe 
himself  in  iron  mail  so  as  not  to  feel  the  effects  of  unjust 
criticism — indulgence  in  which  he  characterized  as  pecu- 
liarly American — and  this  sensitiveness  becoming  known 
to  newspaper  men  generally,  served  to  incite  attacks  from 
that  class  of  them  who,  having  no  independent  reasoning 
powers  or  ideas  of  justice,  are  ever  seeking  opportunities 
for  notoriety  by  stinging  whatever  innocent  and  unresist- 
ing objects  can  be  made  to  feel  their  spite."  Although,  as 
stated  above,  he  was  not  one  of  the  leading  writers  of  the 
paper,  and  was  not  responsible  for  its  political  course,  he 
was  yet  held  accountable,  during  several  years,  for  what- 
ever in  its  columns  provoked  animosity,  and  was  made 
the  victim  of  some  of  the  crudest  slander.  When  he  died, 
his  surviving  partners  said  of  him  :  ''It  is  due  to  justice 
that  we  now  admit  and  chronicle  the  fact,  that  any  excel- 
lencies which  the  Bulletin  has  heretofore  possessed  result- 
ed from  Mr.  Nisbet's  labors  more  than  from  those  of  any 
other  person,  while  he  is  perhaps  responsible  for  fewer  of 
its  faults  than  any  of  the  other  writers  that  were  imme- 
diately associated  with  him.  It  was  his  labor  that  made 
the  Bulletin  instructive  and  attractive  in  its  news  and  lit- 
erary departments  ;  his  finishing  strokes  were  seen  in  al- 
most every  column,  all  of  which  he  made  consistent  one 
with  the  other.  The  editorials  upon  local  and  national 
politics  and  upon  the  passing  topics  of  the  day,  many  of 
which  have  doubtless  provoked  a  multitude  of  resent- 
ments, were  none  of  them  the  production  of  Mr.  Nisbet. 
He  engaged  in  no  strife,  assailed  no  one,  was  offensive  to  no 


JAMES  NISBET   AND    FRANKLIN  TUTHILL.  425 

one,  but  was  useful  and  serviceable  to  his  partners,  of  val- 
ue to  the  State  and  country,  and  an  honor  to  his  kind. 
Such  men  as  Mr.  Nisbet,  and  particularly  in  the  profes- 
sion which  he  adorned  on  this  coast,  seldom  gain  appre- 
ciation or  reward  from  the  busy  world,  that  knows  so  little 
how  much  it  is  their  debtor.  They  devote  their  lives  to 
constant  labors  which  are  the  most  exacting  upon  body 
and  brain,  and  require  a  large  amount  of  self-abnegation, 
and  their  quiet,  modest  usefulness  is  disregarded  amid  the 
selfish  excitements  and  passions  that  whirl  about  them. 
Happy,  indeed,  are  they  if  slander  and  abuse  do  not  dis- 
turb their  still  lives,  and  follow  them  to  the  grave.  But 
we  believe  that  in  spite  of  his  own  sensitive  and  retiring 
nature,  our  departed  friend  and  co-worker  was  better 
appreciated  in  this  community  than  he  himself  knew, 
and  will  be  sincerely  regretted  by  all  whose  natures  sym- 
pathize with  what  is  most  pure  and  lofty  in  our  common 
humanity." 


Franklin  Tuthill,  one  of  Mr.  Nisbet's  partners  and 
editorial  associates  in  the  Bulktin^  died  in  New  York  on 
the  27th  of  August,  1865 — the  same  day  that  the  latter's 
remains  were  conveyed  to  their  final  resting-place  in  San 
Francisco.  He  left  this  city  in  October,  1864,  for  a  trip 
through  Europe,  hoping  to  recover  from  an  organic  dis- 
ease which  had  long  preyed  upon  his  health.  He  return- 
ed to  i^ew  York  in  July,  1865,  after  a  rapid  and  pleasant 
journey  through  England,  France,  Spain,  It-aly,  and  some 
of  the  German  States,  apparently  almost  restored  to 
health,  and  confident  of  his  ability  to  return  at  an  early 
day  to  his  editorial  post.  But  while  engaged  in  correct- 
ing the  proofs  of  his  History  of  California^  which  was  then 
being  printed  in  New  York,  he  was  seized  with  a  relapse 
and  soon  passed  away.  The  BuUeiin  published  the  follow- 
ing sketch  of  his  life  : 

Dr.  Tuthill  was  born  April  3d,  1822,  in  Suffolk  county, 
on  the  east  end  of  Long  Island,  of  a  highly  respectable 
family,  which  was  among  the  earliest  settlers  on  the  Island. 


426  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

He  entered  college  when  only  fourteen  years  old,  and 
graduated  when  eighteen.  He  subsequently  studied 
medicine  under  such  distinguished  Professors  as  the 
late  Yalentine  Mott,  Sr.,  Doctors  Draper,  Revere,  and 
their  associates,  and  graduated  at  the  New  York  Uni- 
versity in  1844.  He  immediately  began  to  practice  his 
profession  near  his  native  place,  and  followed  it  with 
success  for  seven  years,  taking  to  it  that  conscientious 
devotion  to  duty,  patience,  kindness,  and  nicety  of  per- 
ception, which  are  essential  to  the  character  of  a  good 
physician,  and  which  in  his  character  were  always  leading 
traits.  Without  the  least  obtrusiveness  or  desire  for  pub- 
licity. Dr.  Tuthill  became,  through  his  genial  nature,  his 
intelligence,  and  his  zealous  attention  to  the  best  interests 
of  the  community,  a  very  popular  man.  Although  a 
Whig  in  politics,  he  was  for  five  successive  years  appointed 
Town  Superintendent  of  Schools  by  a  Democratic  Board 
of  Supervisors.  In  1860,  he  was  elected  by  a  handsome 
majority  to  represent  his  district  in  the  Assembly  of 
New  York,  and  was  the  first  Whig,  with  a  single  excep- 
tion, ever  sent  to  the  Legislature  from  that  ancient  strong- 
hold of  Democracy.  While  in  the  Legislature,  he  distin- 
guished himself  by  his  ability  and  tact  in  debate,  by  his 
industry,  by  his  i:itegrity  amidst  much  corruption,  and  by 
his  earnest  labors  in  favor  of  the  revised  School  Act,  a 
measure  of  great  benefit  to  the  cause  of  popular  educa- 
tion in  the  Empire  State,  the  passage  of  which  was  large- 
ly the  fruit  of  his  exertions.  He  was  also  an  earnest  and 
eloquent  advocate  of  the  canal  enlargement  policy,  the 
success  of  which,  despite  the  strong  opposition  of  the  Dem- 
ocracy at  a  special  legislative  session,  greatly  increased 
the  commerce  and  wealth  of  the  State.  He  strove  to  get 
through  a  bill  legalizing  dissection  of  the  human  body,  as 
a  means  to  facilitate  anatomical  studies,  in  conformity 
with  the  practice  in  some  foreign  countries ;  but  the  meas- 
ure was  killed  by  amendments  after  it  passed  the  pre- 
liminary stage  in  both  Houses,  though  it  became  a  law 
a  year  or  two  later.  He  made  a  lengthy  report  upon  an 
absurd  petition  to  make  bleeding  in  medical  practice  a 
penal  offence,  provoking  thereby  a  spirited  discussion  in 


JAMES   NISBET   AND   FRANKLIN   TUTHILL.  427 

the  profession  at  home  and  abroad,  and  a  slashing  review 
which  extended  through  three  numbers  of  the  English 
Quarterly — an  organ  of  the  Chrono-Thermalists. 

While  a  member  of  the  Legislature,  Dr.  Tuthill  re- 
moved to  New  York,  intending  to  resume  the  practice  of 
medicine  in  that  city;  but  at  the  end  of  a  year  he  fol- 
lowed his  stronger  bent  to  literary  pursuits,  and  became 
one  of  the  editors  of  the  Daily  Times^  in  which  position 
he  labored  until  1859  with  peculiar  ability  and  success. 
Indeed,  he  developed  the  most  admirable  capacity  for  jour- 
nalism, and  gave  to  it  the  best  energies  of  his  life.  He 
continued  in  his  new  sphere  his  interest  in  popular  educa- 
tion, and  was  an  active  friend  of  medical  science  and  of 
the  various  benevolent  institutions  of  the  city,  showing 
the  most  liberal  feeling  in  regard  to  the  admission  of  wo- 
men to  all  the  advantages  of  a  thorough  medical  educa- 
tion aftorded  by  the  clinics  and  colleges.  He  was  cred- 
ited with  exercising  a  decided  influence  upon  municipal 
affairs,  and  urged  with  great  ability  some  of  most  impor- 
tant measures  of  public  policy,  including  the  new  City 
Hall,  the  Central  Park,  and  other  public  improvements. 
He  probably  did  more  by  his  articles  in  the  Times  than 
any  other  person  to  convince  the  people  and  the  authori- 
ties of  that  city  of  the  value  and  need  of  a  great  park, 
and  to  induce  the  action  which  resulted  in  creating  what 
is  destined  to  be  one  of  the  finest  city  parks  in  the  world. 
His  facts  and  arguments  were  so  pertinent  and  well  ar- 
ranged, his  style  so  pointed,  yet  graceful  and  attractive, 
that  whatever  he  wrote  on  local  topics  was  sure  to  be  read 
attentively  by  all,  and  to  secure  through  cotemporary 
journals  a  wider  circulation  than  even  the  vast  edition  of 
the  l^hiies  could  secure. 

His  public  spirit  and  usefulness  led  to  his  being  elect- 
ed to  the  Legislature  from  New  York  city  in  1858,  when 
he  again  became  conspicuous  for  his  devotion  to  measures 
of  vital  importance  to  the  State,  and  for  the  rare  grace, 
tact  and  ability  with  which  he  advocated  them  in  debate. 
At  this  time,  also,  he  was  among  the  most  earnest  of  the 
early  Republicans.  His  instincts  were  always  opposed  to 
slavery,  as  to  every  other  form  of  injustice,  and  he  had 


428  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

watched  with  concern  the  retrogressive  policy  on  this 
question  of  the  Southern  Democracy.  His  opposition  to 
slavery  extension  was  earnest  and  radical,  without  a  trace 
of  fanaticism.  On  this  subject  he  agreed  in  opinion  with 
that  far-sighted  and  cool-headed  statesman,  Gov.  Seward, 
whose  personal  friendship  he  enjoyed,  and  of  whose  poli- 
cy the  Times  has  always  been  an  able  defender.  He  lived 
long  enough  to  be  gladdened,  as  over  a  private  joy,  at  the 
final  and  complete  removal  of  the  nation's  shame,  without 
wrong-doing  or  rashness  on  the  part  of  the  Government 
which  he  loved. 

Dr.  Tuthill  came  to  San  Francisco,  and  his  connection 
with  the  Bulletin  commenced,  about  November,  1859.  In 
January,  1862,  he  purchased  a  proprietary  interest  in  the 
establishment.  While  he  remained  in  the  State  he  was 
constantly  engaged  as  a  writer  of  editorials  or  general-in- 
formation articles  for  the  second  and  third  pages  of  this 
journal,  or  as  legislative  correspondent  from  Sacramento. 
In  whichever  capacity  he  labored,  his  work  was  brilliantly 
executed.  His  mind  sparkled  with  genius,  and  his  frail 
physical  system  obeyed  its  demands  by  almost  ceaseless  la- 
bor, until,  alas  !  the  body  wore  out  at  the  early  age  of 
forty-three.  It  seemed  as  though  he  could  not  sleep,  for 
fear  some  valuable  thought  might  be  lost  for  the  want  of 
a  ready  hand  to  record  it.  Coming  to  California  in  re- 
sponse to  an  invitation  from  this  office,  he  resolved  to 
make  his  permanent  home  here,  and  at  once  absorbed  the 
spirit  of  the  country.  He  speedily  made  himself  familiar 
with  every  institution  and  capability  of  the  State,  and 
within  a  year  after  his  arrival  possessed  an  amount  of  his- 
torical knowledge  and  local  information  concerning  men 
and  things  that  would  have  shamed  most  pioneers  who 
might  have  ventured  to  compare  knowledge  with  him. 
This  intellectual  achievement  was  accomplished  by  a  vast 
amount  of  dry  and  uninviting  ''head  work."  After  each 
day's  newspaper  labor  had  been  finished,  and  after  his 
evening  entertainments  were  over,  he  devoted  a  large  share 
of  the  night  to  poring  over  the  bound  files  of  old  Califor- 
nia newspapers,  carefully  noting  each  fact  and  circum- 
stance that  had  historical  value,  or  that  could  be  made 


JAMES   NISBET   AND   FRANKLIN   TUTHILL.  429 

useful  to  him  as  a  journalist.  He  followed  up  this  prac- 
tice until  all  the  files  in  the  Bulletin  office,  in  the  Mer- 
cantile Library,  as  well  as  the  mass  of  bound  volumes  of 
newspapers  in  the  State  Library  at  Sacramento,  were 
essentially  read  through,  and  their  contents  treasured  in 
his  mind.  It  was  a  work  of  years,  mostly  performed  while 
others  slept. 

The  fruits  of  this  labor  were  largely  enjoyed  by  the 
BuUetin;  but  since  Dr.  Tuthill  left  California,  the  fact 
has  been  ascertained  that  he  had  a  higher  ambition  to 
gratify  than  could  be  gained  as  a  newspaper  writer,  and 
which  accounts  for  his  persevering  investigation.  It 
seems  that  while  he  was  performing  an  extraordinary 
amount  of  intellectual  labor  in  connection  with  this  jour- 
nal— and  while  as  an  active  church  member,  teacher  in 
the  Sunday  schools,  occasional  lecturer  before  benevolent 
institutions  and  temperance  societies,  his  leisure  hours 
were  apparently  fully  employed — he  was  engaged  in  still 
another  labor,  which  absorbed  the  highest  capacities  of 
his  mind.  He  was  devoting  a  certain  number  of  hours 
each  day  to  collecting  materials  for  and  WTiting  a  history 
of  California.  What  the  scope  and  design  of  his  history 
may  have  been  we  have  no  means  of  knowing,  further 
than  the  title  imports,  for  he  seems  to  have  admitted  no 
one  into  his  confidence  on  the  subject,  outside  of  his 
family  and  the  publisher  whom  he  consulted.  We  learn 
to-day,  for  the  first  time,  that  when  Dr.  Tuthill  left  Cali- 
fornia he  took  with  him  the  manuscript  copy  of  his 
history,  embracing  matter  enough  for  a  large  volume, 
which  was  placed  in  the  hands  of  the  printer  in  Xew 
York  before  he  left  that  city  for  Europe.  While  trav- 
eling in  foreign  countries,  it  appears  that  he  visited  the 
principal  libraries  where  manuscripts  concerning  the  early 
history  of  California  are  preserved,  and  it  is  presumable 
that  his  history  is  to  be  enriched  and  made  authentic 
by  much  valuable  data  not  hitherto  published.  After 
his  return  to  New  York  from  Europe,  he  was  employing 
his  time  in  superintending  the  printing  of  his  book,  when 
death  terminated  his  earthly  duties.  We  can  assume 
with  certainty,  however,  that  his  history  is  written  with 


430  REPRESENTATIYE   MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

the  same  purity,  clearness,  compactness  and  grace  which 
characterized  his  style  as  a  writer  for  the  press,  and  which 
lent  a  charm  to  everything  that  came  from  his  pen. 

In  our  invigorating  climate,  and  surrounded  by  the 
fascinating  circumstances  of  life  in  a  new  country,  he 
seemed  to  develop  in  the  course  of  his  newspaper  writ- 
ing a  different  and  higher  capacity.  The  critical  reader 
of  the  Bulletin's  columns  while  he  was  employed  upon 
them,  will  remember  the  keen  wit,  the  playful  fancy,  the 
original  and  apposite  illustrations,  the  abundant  flow  of 
humor,  the  fund  of  information,  the  felicitous  use  of 
words,  which  gave  beauty  and  influence  to  his  daily  pro- 
ductions. These  traits  were  observable  in  all  he  did, 
either  as  editor,  correspondent  or  reporter.  His  reports 
of  public  meetings,  speeches  and  debates  were  peculiarly 
graphic,  picturesque  and  entertaining,  giving  the  very  life 
and  spirit  of  the  scenes  or  utterances  reproduced.  His 
happy  reports  of  the  earliest  lectures  and  sermons  of 
Thomas  Starr  King  first  introduced  and  popularized  on 
this  coast  that  distinguished  man,  who  acknowledged  to 
Dr.  Tuthill  how  much  he  esteemed  this  brilliant  labor  in 
his  behalf,  and  who  also  expressed  his  admiration  for  the 
Doctor's  own  rare  merit  as  an  extemporaneous  speaker,  in 
which  capacity  he  was  often  called  upon  to  serve  some 
charitable,  religious  or  literary  institutions  in  this  city. 
His  gifts  were  fatal  to  him:  for  while  he  was  entirely 
averse  to  display,  and  never  courted  notice  in  any  man- 
ner, he  loved  to  do  with  all  his  might  what  his  heart  and 
intellect  prompted,  and  thus  sacrificed  the  physical  vigor 
that  could  alone  sustain  him  even  at  the  single  task  of 
journalism. 

It  is  impossible  for  those  who  recently  labored  with 
Dr.  Tuthill  in  connection  with  this  journal,  to  adequately 
express  their  high  appreciation  of  his  character,  or  the 
depth  of  their  sorrow  at  his  loss.  None  but  those  who 
knew  his  pure  and  guileless  nature,  his  genial  ways,  his 
unvarying  cheerfulness,  his  truthfulness,  his  benevolence, 
his  utter  lack  of  malicious  or  sinister  traits,  can  under- 
stand how  he  was  beloved  and  how  keenly  his  loss  is  felt. 
But  it  is  some  consolation  to  reflect  that  a  very  large  num- 


JAMES  NISBET   AND   FRANKLIN   TUTHILL.  431 

ber  of  people  in  this  State  knew  him  personally,  many 
of  them  intimately — for  he  was  accessible  to  all — and  that 
they,  as  well  as  ourselves,  recognized  him  as  a  friend,  while 
they  appreciated  his  great  value  to  society,  ^^o  man  in 
his  position  could  have  enjoyed  more  of  public  esteem 
than  he  had  earned.  In  the  church  where  he  regularly 
attended,  and  in  the  private  circles  drawn  around  him,  he 
was  sincerely  beloved.  Whatever  antagonisms  were  pro- 
voked by  the  course  of  the  BulMin  on  public  questions, 
never  extended  to  him  personally ;  and  yet  he  made  no 
concessions  of  principle  or  action  to  win  the  esteem  that 
everywhere  flowed  to  him,  and  which  we  are  sure  must 
have  been  peculiarly  grateful  to  his  feelings.  His  writings 
and  his  daily  walks  were  guided  by  convictions  of  duty, 
and  his  life  has  been  offered  on  its  shrine. 


-2ri7BR-IT 


rti"" 


SERRANUS  CLINTON  HASTINGS. 

^Y    JhOMAS    f*>  yVlADDEN. 


THE  ancestry  of  this  gentleman  can  be  traced  to  times 
far  remote.  He  is  a  lineal  descendant  of  the  Gen- 
eral of  his  name  who  led  the  Danish  forces  into  England 
during  the  Heptarchy.  His  grandfather  emigrated  from 
England  to  Rhode  Island  early  in  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury. His  father,  Robert  Collins  Hastings,  a  man  of 
considerable  intelligence,  was  bred  a  mechanic,  but  his 
ardent  temper  drew  him  away  from  his  laborious  pursuits 
to  a  wider  field  and  higher  sphere  of  usefulness.  During 
the  War  of  1812,  he  commanded  a  company  of  soldiers 
at  Sackett's  Harbor.  He  was  conspicuous  in  the  exciting 
political  events  of  his  day,  and  was  a  firm  friend  and  sup- 
porter of  DeWitt  Clinton.  After  that  noble  patron  of 
virtue,  learning  and  labor,  he  named  his  son.  His  wife 
(mother  of  S.  Clinton)  was  a  Miss  Brayton,  of  the  pioneer 
family  of  that  name,  who  were  the  first  settlers  of  Jef- 
ferson and  St.  Lawrence  counties,  New  York. 

Serranus  Clinton  Hastings  was  born  in  Jefferson 
county,  New  York,  Nov.  22d,  1814.  In  early  youth,  he 
passed  six  years  in  study  at  Governeur  Academy,  At 
the  age  of  twenty,  he  became  the  principal  of  the  Norwich 
Academy,  Chenango  county.  New  York.  This  position,- 
after  one  year's  successful  teaching,  he  resigned,  having 
introduced  the  Hamiltonian  system  of  instruction  in  the 
languages,  the  Angletean  system  of  mathematics,  and 
other  branches  of  education. 
28 


434  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

He  commenced  the  study  of  law  with  Charles  Thorpe, 
Esq.,  of  Norwich.  In  the  office  of  this  gentleman  he 
prosecuted  his  studies  only  a  few  months,  when,  in  1834, 
he  emigrated  to  Lawrenceburg,  Indiana,  where,  in  the 
office  of  Daniel  S.  Majors,  Esq.,  he  completed  his  legal 
studies.  He  did  not  enter  immediately  upon  his  profes- 
sional labors.  During  the  bitter  presidential  contest  of 
1836,  he  edited  the  Indiana  Signal^  an  influential  journal 
which  gave  a  spirited  and  effective  support  to  Martin  Yan 
Buren. 

In  December,  1836,  Mr.  Hastings  resumed  his  march 
westward.  Arriving  at  Terre  Haute,  Indiana,  he  presented 
himself  to  Judge  Porter,  of  the  Circuit  Court,  and  stood 
the  test  of  a  severe  legal  examination  at  the  hands  of  that 
able  jurist. 

He  continued  his  journey  until  he  reached  the  Black 
Hawk  Purchase,  (now  the  State  of  Iowa)  and  arrived  at 
Burlington  in  January,  1837.  In  the  following  spring  he 
took  up  his  residence  on  the  western  bank  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi, where  has  since  sprung  up  the  city  of  Muscatine, 
Iowa.  At  that  time  this  vast  stretch  of  country  was 
attached  to  the  Territory  of  Wisconsin  for  judicial  pur- 
poses. Mr.  Hastings  now  resolved  to  commence  the 
practice  of  the  profession  for  which  he  had  prepared  him- 
self. He  was  examined  by  Judge  Irwin,  by  whom  he  was 
admitted  to  the  bar  in  1837.  Shortly  afterwards,  he  was 
commissioned  a  Justice  of  the  Peace  by  Gov.  Dodge  of 
Wisconsin,  with  jurisdiction  extending  over  the  country 
lying  between  Burlington  and  Davenport,  a  distance  of 
ninety  miles.  The  western  limit  of  his  jurisdiction  being 
undefined,  the  grasping  young  magistrate,  for  his  own 
satisfaction,  fixed  it  at  the  Pacific  Ocean — not  having  the 
fear  of  Mexico  before  his  eyes.  He  had  but  one  case 
during  his  term  of  office — a  criminal  charge  against  a 
man,  who  was  found  guilty  by  the  Justice  of  stealing  $30 
from  a  citizen  and  $3  from  the  court.  The  sentence  was, 
that  the  prisoner  be  taken  to  an  adjacent  grove  and  tied 
to  an  oak  tree,  and  to  receive  upon  his  back  thirty  lashes 
for  the  money  taken  from  the  citizen  and  three  lashes  for 
the  $3  stolen  from  the  court,  and  to  be  thence  transported 


SERRANLTS  CLINTON   HASTINGS.  435 

across  the  river  to  the  Illinois  shore  and  banished  from 
the  Territory  for  ever;  which  sentence,  in  presence  of 
the  court  and  of  all  the  people,  was  duly  and  formally 
executed. 

On  June  12th,  1838,  Iowa  was  erected  into  a  separate 
Territory.  Mr.  Hastings  became  the  Democratic  candidate 
of  his  district  for  the  first  Legislature  to  assemble  under 
the  Territorial  Grovernment.  After  a  very  spirited  contest, 
he  was  elected. 

From  time  to  time  thereafter,  and  until  1846,  (when 
Iowa  was  admitted  into  the  Union)  Mr.  Hastings  con- 
tinued in  public  life,  representing  his  constituents  either 
in  the  House  or  Council.  During  one  of  these  sessions 
of  the  Territorial  Legislature,  he  was  elected  President 
of  the  Council,  the  duties  of  which  position  he  dis- 
charged with  great  dispatch.  During  another  session, 
while  a  member  of  the  Judiciary  Committee,  and  asso- 
ciated with  Hon.  James  W.  Grimes,  since  United  States 
Senator,  he  reported  from  the  committee  the  celebrated 
statute  known  in  Oregon  and  Iowa  for  many  years  as  the 
Blue  Book.  This  work  was  accomplished  in  ninety  days, 
the  limit  of  a  legislative  session.  It  was  also  during  one 
of  these  sessions  that  occurred  what  is  known  in  the 
history  of  Iowa  as  the  ^^ Missouri  War.''  This  ''war" 
originated  in  the  attempt  of  the  sheriff  of  Clark  county, 
Missouri,  and  other  Missouri  officials,  to  collect  taxes 
within  the  territorial  limits  of  Iowa.  Gov.  Boggs  of 
Missouri  and  Gov.  Lucas  of  Iowa  were  the  acknowledged 
and  opposing  leaders.  Mr.  Hastings  took  an  active  part 
in  this  conflict.  He  left  his  seat  in  the  Legislature,  re- 
paired to  Muscatine,  and  took  command  of  the  ''Mus- 
catine Dragoons"  and  three  companies  of  militia.  With- 
out tents  or  sufficient  clothing,  with  no  arms  except 
pistols  and  bowie-knives,  no  forage  for  his  animals,  and 
a  scanty  supply  of  food  for  his  men,  he  led  his  forces  in 
the  heart  of  a  stern  and  bleak  winter  entirely  through 
the  "  enemy's  country"  towards  the  southern  boundary 
of  Missouri.  The  result  of  this  campaign  was  the  blood- 
less but  glorious  capture  of  the  obnoxious  sheriff,  who 
was  taken  triumphantly  back  to  the   outraged   soil  of 


436  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Iowa,  and  lodged  in  the  Muscatine  county  jail.  Before 
Major  Hastings  could  again  cross  the  Missouri  line,  where 
the  Missouri  forces  were  preparing  to  meet  him,  the 
difficulties  were  adjusted  and  peace  fully  restored. 

Shortly  after  the  termination  of  this  serio-comic 
campaign,  Major  Hastings  was  appointed  on  the  Gover- 
nor's staff,  with  the  rank  of  Major  of  Militia. 

Early  in  1846,  a  convention  of  the  people  of  Iowa 
assembled  at  the  Capitol,  and  accepted  the  boundaries 
proposed  by  Congress  for  the  new  State.  Major  Hastings 
was  unanimously  nominated  for  Congress,  and  elected 
subsequently  by  the  people. 

Iowa  being  admitted  into  the  Union,  December  28th, 
1846,  Major  Hastings  took  his  seat  as  her  representative 
in  the  Twenty-ninth  Congress.  With  one  exception,  he 
was  the  youngest  member  of  the  House  of  Hepresenta- 
tives — a  body  noted  for  the  virtues  and  talents  of  its 
members.  John  Quincy  Adams  had  not  yet  been  re- 
moved from  the  theatre  of  his  great  triumphs.  Abraham 
Lincoln,  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  Andrew  Johnson,  and  other 
bright  names,  shone  on  the  roll  of  members. 

In  January,  1848,  Major  Hastings  was  appointed  Chief 
Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Iowa.  He  held  this 
position  a  little  more  than  one  year,  when  he  resigned 
for  the  purpose  of  emigrating  to  California.  He  arrived 
in  this  State  in  the  spring  of  1849,  and  settled  at  Benicia. 
Shortly  after  his  arrival,  he  was  unanimously  elected  by 
the  Legislature  Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court,  and 
served  out  his  term  of  two  years. 

In  1851,  Judge  Hastings  received  the  Democratic 
nomination  for  Attorney  General,  to  which  position  he 
was  elected  by  the  people,  receiving  the  highest  vote  cast 
at  the  election,  except  that  given  to  the  candidate  for 
State  Treasurer  on  the  same  ticket.  Major  Richard  Roman. 
This  vote  was  considered  highly  complimentary,  as  the 
field  was  occupied  solely  by  his  Whig  opponent,  who 
eloquently  canvassed  the  State.  At  the  end  of  his  two 
years'  term  of  office,  he  retired  to  private  life,  and  has  not 
since  been  before  the  people  as  a  candidate  for  office. 

Judge  Hastings  is  a  married  man,  and  has  eight  living 


SERRANUS   CLINTOX   HASTINGS.  437 

children — four  boys  and  four  girls.  He  is  a  man  of  nerv- 
ouSj  active  temperament,  genial  manners,  and  agreeable 
presence.  He  is  tall  in  stature  and  of  powerful  build, 
possessing  great  physical  endurance.  He  is  a  ready  and 
racy  debater,  but  lays  no  claims  to  oratory.  He  is  not 
particularly  adapted  to  the  legal  profession,  and  his  nature 
rebels  against  the  restraints  of  judicial  office.  His  legal 
attainments  are,  however,  considerable.  He  is  a  fine 
Latin  scholar.  His  conduct  and  decisions,  as  the  highest 
judicial  functionary  of  two  States,  have  been  generally 
commended,  and  not  once,  in  our  presence  or  to  our 
knowledge,  condemned.  His  conversation  is  decidedly 
entertaining,  and  at  times  infused  with  wit  and  humor. 
His  heart  cannot  grow  old.  Politics  and  finances  gene- 
rally engross  his  thoughts. 

While  wearing  the  honors  and  cares  of  office,  whirling 
in  the  dizzy  round  of  political  agitation,  he  always  hus- 
banded his  resources,  and  managed  his  private  business 
affairs  with  consummate  wisdom.  He  is  one  of  the  few 
pioneers  of  California  who  grasped  the  golden  oppor- 
tunity offered  by  the  flush,  exciting  times  when  the  State 
was  in  her  infancy,  to  lay  broad  and  deep  the  foundations 
of  their  future  wealth.  His  entire  career,  whether  viewed 
from  a  political  or  financial  standpoint,  has  been  one  of 
unbroken,  almost  marvelous  success. 

Judge  Hastings  was  the  guest  of  Gov.  Seward  in  his 
tour  of  observation  through  Oregon,  Washington,  and 
Alaska,  in  the  summer  of  1869;  and  private  duties  in- 
terfered to  prevent  him  accompanying  that  great  friend 
of  the  Pacific  coast  in  his  journey  through  our  sister 
Republic.  He  is  addicted  to  travel,  and,  since  he  left 
public  office,  the  greater  part  of  his  time  which  could  be 
spared  from  the  proper  conducting  of  his  children's  edu- 
cation and  the  management  of  his  estates,  has  been  spent 
in  extended  visits  to  the  Eastern  States  and  Europe. 
His  residence  is  at  San  Francisco. 


JAMES  WILLIS  NESMITH. 

^Y  THE  Editor. 


THIS  early  pioneer  of  Oregon  occupies  a  prominent 
place  among  the  representative  men  of  the  Pacific 
Coast.  He  is  one  of  the  few  surviving  public  men  who 
sought  the  extreme  west,  impelled  more  by  the  love  of 
adventure  than  by  a  thirst  for  fame  or  fortune.  He  came 
to  these  shores  when  a  very  young  man,  long  before  the 
discovery  of  gold  in  California,  and  made  his  home  in 
Oregon,  where  he  has  passed  the  greater  portion  of  his 
life. 

His  remote  paternal  ancestors  migrated  from  Argyle- 
shire,  in  Scotland,  and  settled  in  Ireland,  in  the  province 
of  Ulster,  about  the  year  1612.  His  great,  great  gr^and- 
father,  James  Nesmith,  emigrated  from  the  valley  of  the 
river  Bann,  in  North  Ireland,  to  America,  in  1718. 
He  was  one  of  the  first  sixteen  settlers  in  the  town  of 
Londonderry,  New  Hampshire.  In  this  town  the  father 
of  James  Willis  was  born,  and  passed  his  early  boyhood. 
Before  he  had  grown  to  man's  estate,  he  moved  to  Ae- 
worth.  New  Hampshire.  Afterwards  he  married  a  Miss 
Willis  of  Elizabethtown,  New  Jersey,  and  emigrated  to 
the  eastern  frontier  of  Maine,  where  James  Willis,  their 
only  child,  was  born  July  23d,  1820.  His  mother  died 
when  he  was  but  eight  months  old.  At  the  age  of  nine 
years,  the  boy  was  thrown  upon  his  own  resources,  his 
father,  who  was  a  merchant  and  trader,  having  been  un- 
fortunate and  reduced  to  poverty  some  years  previous. 
By  hard  work  of  various  kinds  he  kept  himself  above 
want.    At  the  age  of  fifteen  he  walked  the  entire  distance 


440  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

from  Brooks,  Maine,  to  AewortH,  New  Hampshire.  In 
summer,  whenever  he  could  find  employment,  he  worked 
upon  farms,  and  devoted  his  winters  to  study  at  the  dis- 
trict school. 

When  eighteen  years  old  he  left  Clearmont,  New 
HamjDshire,  with  all  his  worldly  goods  packed  upon  his 
back,  and  twenty-five  dollars  in  pocket,  and  traveled  on 
foot  to  Albany,  New  York.  Thence  he  proceeded,  partly 
on  canal  boats  and  partly  on  steamboats  as  a  deck  passen- 
ger, to  Cincinnati,  Ohio.  Here  his  funds  gave  out.  He 
obtained  employment  as  a  farm  hand  near  the  Queen 
City,  and  continued  for  some  time  to  work  at  his  old  oc- 
cupation, receiving  twelve  dollars  per  month  for  his  serv- 
ices. When  the  ''melancholy  days"  returned,  he  was 
no  longer  required  upon  the  farm,  and  was  compelled  to 
look  elsewhere  for  work.  He  soon  secured  a  new ''en- 
gagement" to  cut  cordwood,  at  fifty  cents  per  cord. 

From  1838  until  the  spring  of  1843,  Mr.  Nesmith 
followed  a  sort  of  nomadic  life  in  the  States  of  Illinois, 
Missouri  and  Iowa.  During  this  period  he  learned  the 
carpenter  trade,  at  which  occupation,  being  of  a  mechan- 
ical turn  of  mind,  he  became  very  proficient.  During 
the  latter  part  of  1842  and  the  beginning  of  1843,  the 
young  carpenter  assisted  in  the  construction  of  Fort 
Scott,  now  in  the  State  of  Kansas. 

In  the  spring  of  the  latter  year  a  number  of  men  were 
preparing  to  emigrate  to  Oregon  from  Missouri.  Mr. 
iVesmith  determined  to  join  them.  He  had  concluded 
that  his  prospects  of  acquiring  a  competence  by  hard 
labor  were  dismal;  and  as  he  loved  the  adventures  inci- 
dent to  a  frontier  life,  he  gladly  embraced  the  oppor- 
tunity which  now  offered  to  penetrate  the  solitudes  of 
the  wilderness,  and  explore  the  vast  unknown  regions 
which  stretched  to  the  west  of  the  Missouri.  The  party 
started  overland  from  Independence.  Among  its  mem- 
bers were  Peter  H.  Burnett,  afterwards  first  Governor  of 
the  State  of  California,  Pierson  B.  Redding,  Samuel  J. 
Hensley,  and  others  who  have  attained  distinction  in  the 
States  of  the  Pacific.  Being  expert  with  the  rifle  and 
the  shot-gun,  Mr.  Nesmith  hunted  for  a  mess  of  six  or 


JAMES   WILLIS   NESMITH.  441 

eight  men,  whom  he  kept  supplied  with  meat  in  regions 
where  any  game  could  be  found.  He  arrived  with  his 
companions  in  the  valley  of  the  Willamette,  Oregon,  Oc- 
tober, 1843.  For  two  or  three  years  thereafter  he  worked 
at  the  carpenter's  trade.  Soon  after  his  arrival  he  determ- 
ined to  prepare  himself  for  the  legal  profession.  While 
following  his  trade  he  devoted  his  leisure  hours  to  read- 
ing law. 

In  1846,  Mr.  Nesmith  was  married,  and  settled  on  a 
farm,  which  he  cultivated  for  about  two  years.  He  ap- 
pears to  have  always  cherished  a  fondness  for  the  life  and 
labors  of  a  husbandman.  But  it  was  appointed  that  he 
should  not  remain  secluded  from  the  observation  of  his 
fellow  men.  From  1846  until  1866  he  served  the  Terri- 
tory and  State  of  Oregon  in  many  and  varied  capacities. 
During  that  period  and  since,  he  has  also  been  engaged 
in  many  varieties  of  business  pursuits :  farming,  milling 
and  merchandising  have  alternately  received  his  attention. 

In  1848,  he  was  a  captain  in  the  expedition  against; 
the  Indians  of  Middle  Oregon,  during  what  was  known  as 
the  '•  Cay  use  War."  In  the  latter  part  of  that  year  he 
visited  California,  and  worked  for  more  than  twelve 
months  in  the  gold  mines. 

In  1853,  he  served  as  captain  in  the  war  with  the 
Indians  of  Southern  Oregon. 

In  1853  and  1854,  he  was  United  States  Marshal  for 
Oregon. 

In  1856,  he  commanded  a  regiment  during  the  war 
with  the  Yackama  Indians  in  north-eastern  Oregon  and 
Washington  Territory. 

In  1857  and  1858,  he  was  Superintendent  of  Indian 
affairs  for  Oregon  and  Washington  Territory. 

His  patience  and  ability  displayed  in  the  management 
of  the  complicated  concerns  of  this  department,  attested 
his  practical  wisdom  and  absolute  integrity. 

When  the  memorable  controversy  arose  between 
President  Buchanan  and  Senator  Douglas,  Mr.  Nesmith 
adhered  to  the  views  expressed  by  the  latter,  to  whose 
course  and  conduct  he  gave  a  hearty  endorsement. 
Though  holding  a  federal  office,  his  sentiments  concern- 


442  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

ing  the  events  then  disrupting  the  Democratic  party  were 
candidly  asserted,  without  malice  yet  w^ithout  reserve. 

In  June,  1860,  President  Buchanan  removed  him 
from  the  office  he  had  held  for  more  than  three  years, 
and  in  the  administration  of  which  he  had  given  so  much 
satisfaction.  Three  months  had  not  elapsed  thereafter, 
when  the  people  of  Oregon  selected  him  to  represent 
them  in  the  national  councils. 

The  Legislature  of  that  State  convened  in  September, 
being  divided  into  three  nearly  equal  elements — the  Doug- 
las Democrats,  Administration  Democrats,  and  Republic- 
ans, with  the  first-named  party  in  a  small  plurality.  Af- 
ter a  few  ineffectual  ballots,  Mr.  Nesmith  was  elected 
United  States  Senator  for  the  full  term  of  six  years  from 
the  fouth  of  March,  1861.  Col.  E.  D.  Baker  was  chosen 
for  the  short  term  of  five  years.  During  his  Senatorial 
term,  Mr.  ISTesmith  served  on  the  committees  on  Military 
Affairs,  Commerce  and  Revolutionary  Claims.  He  was  a 
^^War  Democrat,"  and  supported  most  of  Mr.  Lincoln's 
measures  for  the  suppression  of  the  Rebellion.  He  op- 
posed the  Emancipation  Proclamation  on  the  ground  that 
the  Constitution  did  not  warrant  its  issuance.  He  be- 
lieved President  Johnson's  policy  of  reconstruction  was 
right,  and  endorsed  it.  He  sympathized  warmly  with 
Mr.  Johnson  in  his  disputes  with  Congress.  In  the  last 
Presidential  election  he  supported  Seymour  and  Blair,  and 
the  weight  of  his  name  and  influence,  in  that  election, 
probably  turned  the  well-balanced  scales  in  favor  of  the 
Democracy  in  Oregon. 

Mr.  Nesmith  is  an  earnest  and  forcible,  though  not  an 
eloquent  speaker.  He  never  wearies  his  auditors,  and 
has  no  difficulty  in  engaging  their  attention,  no  matter  to 
what  subject  he  addresses  himself.  His  bold,  plain  and 
emphatic  utterances  carry  the  conviction  that  he  is  a  prac- 
tical and  truthful  man.  He  is  a  devoted  son  of  the  State 
where  he  has  so  long  lived,  and  his  popularity  is  very 
great  throughout  the  new  north-west.  The  speech  which 
follows  this  sketch,  in  which  he  urged  upon  Congress  the 
necessity  of  establishing  a  branch  of  the  LTnited  States 
Mint  at  Dalles  City,  Oregon,  will  be  found  interesting  on 


JAMES  WILLIS  NESMITH.  443 

account  of  the  view  it  presents  of  the  mineral  resources 
of  Oregon,  Washington,  and  Idaho,  while  his  humorous 
attacks  on  the  principal  enemy  of  his  favorite  measure 
render  its  perusal  anything  but  monotonous. 


Delivered  in  the  United  States  Senate,  April  1st,  1864, 
ON  the  Proposition  to  establish  a  Branch  Mint  at 
Dalles  City,  Oregon. 

Me.  President  :  Early  in  the  present  session,  impelled  by  a  sense 
of  duty  to  the  State  which  I  in  part  represent,  I  introduced  the  bill 
which  has  just  been  read;  it  was  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Fi- 
nance for  investigation.  That  committee  did  my  colleagues  in  this 
body  and  in  the  other  House ,  and  myself,  the  honor  to  in\dte  us  be- 
fore them  to  present  such  facts  as  might  be  within  our  knowledge 
bearing  upon  the  question  under  consideration;  and  we  w^ere  not 
without  hope  that  the  reasons  we  then  presented  would  induce  the 
committee  to  give  us  a  favorable  report  upon  a  measure  of  such 
vital  importance  to  our  State  as  well  as  to  our  neighboring  Terri- 
tories of  Washington  and  Idaho. 

It  appears  that  the  committee,  deferring  to  a  usage  so  venerable 
as  to  have  almost  become  the  common  law  of  the  Senate,  after  list- 
ening to  the  representations  of  our  delegation,  who  were  supposed 
to  know  something  about  the  propriety  of  the  measure,  referred  the 
question  to  the  decision  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasmy,  who  tac- 
itly admitted  that  he  had  no  information  upon  the  subject,  and  who 
in  return  referred  it  to  one  James  Pollock,  Director  of  the  Mint  at 
Philadelphia,  and  who  was  the  very  man  who  knew  less  than  any 
other  party  consulted,  or  likely  to  be  consulted,  about  the  q  aestion, 
and  who  has  sent  here  a  communication  adverse  to  the  establish- 
ment of  the  proposed  branch  mint  in  Oregon,  and  from  which  the 
following  luminous  extract  is  made : 

"  Coinage  is  one  of  the  highest  and  most  important  attributes  of  national  sov- 
ereignty, and  should  be  exercised  and  controlled  in  such  a  manner  as  will  tend  to 
strengthen  rather  than  weaken  the  national  Government.  It  is  respectfully  sug- 
gested whether  the  providing  of  additional  coinage  establishments  does  not  tend 
toward  national  disintegration." 

While  the  fate  of  the  measure  rested  with  the  unbiased  judg- 
ment of  the  honorable  Senators  who  compose  the  Finance  Commit- 
tee, I  had  no  apprehensions  of  anything  but  a  favorable  result;  but 


444  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

when  my  bill  was  sent  on  a  voyage  of  discovery,  first  to  the  case- 
mates of  the  Treasury  Department,  and  thence  to  the  genius  who 
presides  over  the  parent  mint  in  the  city  of  '  *  brotherly  love/'  I  was 
ajDprehensive  that  I  should  never  again  behold  the  fair  proportions 
of  my  cherished  offspring.  My  worst  fears  have  been  realized. 
My  bill  has  returned  from  its  peregrinations  hawked  at,  torn,  and 
dilapidated  by  the  stupidity  and  ignorance  of  the  company  it  has 
kept,  and  its  mangled  remains  are  now  before  me  in  the  shape  of  a 
recommendation  for  an  assay  office. 

Before  I  had  ever  beheld  the  American  Congress  I  was  so  ver- 
dant as  to  suppose  tnat  great  questions  affecting  the  country,  or  any 
portion  of  it,  were  decided  by  the  intelligence  and  good  sense  of 
the  members,  without  reference  to  the  narrow,  contracted,  and  an- 
tiquated prejudices  of  some  old  fogy  of  some  previous  generation, 
whose  views  could  only  be  valuable  as  an  illustration  of  what  might 
be  said  by  an  active,  energetic,  and  successful  competitor  for  the 
capital  prize  at  the  world's  fools'  fair. 

My  constituents  are  an  eminently  practical  and  unsophisticated 
sort  of  people.  When  I  return  to  them  I  shall  be  called  upon  to 
give  an  account  of  all  the  deeds  and  misdeeds  done  by  me  in  this 
body;  and  among  other  things  I  shall  be  called  upon  to  explain  why 
their  prayer  for  a  branch  mint  was  not  responded  to.  Well,  sir, 
in  my  shame  and  confusion,  I  shall  have  to  state  that  Mr.  Pollock 
was  opposed  to  the  measure.  They  will  naturally  enough  say,  "We 
sent  you  to  the  American  Congress  to  urge  our  claims,  and  cannot 
see  what  Mr.  Pollock  had  to  do  with  the  question. "  You  cannot 
imagine,  Senators,  how  the  people,  in  their  simplicity,  will  be 
startled  and  surprised  when  I  deliberately  proceed  to  tell  them  that 
before  a  branch  mint  can  be  established  for  the  coinage  of  their 
gold,  the  bill  must  be  sent  to  one  James  Pollock  for  his  approval  or 
disapproval.  If  I  am  so  fortunate  as  to  convince  them  that  this 
Pollock  is  a  coordinate  branch  of  this  great  and  glorious  Govern- 
ment, they  will  very  naturally  desire  to  know  upon  what  grounds 
«nd  upon  what  reasons  he  based  his  refusal  to  so  just  a  demand. 
-Then  I  shall  be  forced  to  unfold  to  them  the  mighty,  profound, 
*ind  luminous  reasons  of  the  philosopical,  astute,  and  recondite 
^"ollock,  in  this  wise :  ' '  Oregonians,  you  might  have  had  a  branch 
mint  to  coin  your  gold  and  your  silver  at  your  doors,  and  thus  save 
you  from  a  loss  of  fifteen  or  twenty  per  cent,  of  the  precious  metals 
for  which  you  so  industriously  delve  in  the  earth,  and  of  which  you 
are  daily  being  robbed,  either  by  speculators  or  by  reason  of  the  risk, 
expense,  and  delay  incident  to  sending  your  gold  and  silver  thousands 
of  miles  away  to  be  coined;  but  the  truth  is,  that  by  some  recondite 
process  beyond  my  comprehension,  and  known  only  to  the  great 
political  alchemists,  the  profound  Pollock,  after  submitting  branch 
mints  to  the  torturing  process  of  decomposition  and  analysis,  has 
discovered  that  their  component  parts  *  consist  of  treason,  secession, 
withdrawal  from  the  Union,'  abrogation  of  constitutional  compacts, 
denial  of  Federal  authority,  disregard  of  oaths,  usurpation  of  na- 
tional prerogatives,  stealing  of  public  property,  arson,  and  murder. 


JAMES   WILLIS   NESMITH.  445 

all  of  which,  when  recombined  into  a  modern  branch  inint,  consti- 
tutes the  essence  of  all  these  crimes  latterly  known  as  disirdegrafion ! 
Why,  sir,  after  this  lucid  statement  of  the  evils  which  our  people  in 
their  simple  credulity  have  invoked  upon  their  own  heads,  when 
again  the  people  of  Oregon,  Washington,  and  Idaho  Temtory  pe- 
tition you  for  the  location  of  a  monster  of  so  hideous  mien  in  their 
midst,  you  will  be  enabled  to  silence  their  clamors  at  once  by  the 
bare  mention  of  ''Pollock  Disintegration,"  or  " Disintegration  Pol- 
lock. "  Why,  sir,  its  effect  will  be  as  instantaneously  soothing  as 
the  cabalistic  invocation  of  the  "  3Ianitoiva"  which  frightens  the 
young  Indian  to  sleep,  or  the  bare  mention  of  that  devil  in  English 
which  reduces  white  urchins  to  a  state  of  propriety  if  not  of  slum- 
ber. Mr.  Pollock,  it  would  seem,  has  not  only  found  time  to  draw 
his  annual  stipend  with  the  greatest  regularity,  but  has  devoted 
some  of  his  leisure  hours  to  an  examination  of  the  Constitution  of 
the  United  States,  upon  which  instrument  he  assumes  to  become  a 
commentator,  and  with  the  greatest  self-complacency  proceeds  to 
inform  us  that  ' '  coinage  is  one  of  the  highest  and  most  important 
attributes  of  national  sovereignty,  and  should  be  exercised  and 
controlled  in  such  a  manner  as  will  tend  to  strengthen  rather  than 
weaken  the  national  Government,"  and  then  proceeds  to  suggest 
that  "additional  coinage  establishments  tend  toward  national 
disintegration." 

It  is  true,  sir,  that  our  forefathers  in  forming  the  Constitution 
of  the  United  States  did  define  the  powers  of  Congress;  and  among 
a  variety  of  specified  objects  placed  within  its  jurisdiction  was  that 
"to  coin  money  and  regulate  the  value  thereof;"  but  Mr.  Pollock 
is  the  first  of  the  great  commentators  who  has  found  it  necessary  to 
raise  his  warning  voice  against  a  liberal  exercise  of  this  * '  one  of  the 
highest  attributes  of  national  sovereignty,"  so  essential  to  the  pros- 
perity and  general  welfare  of  a  great  and  powerful  nation.  His 
profound  reasoning  would  seem  to  indicate  that  even  the  limited 
exercise  of  this  great  prerogative  was  only  a  safe  experiment  when 
conducted  at  the  parent  mint  at  Philadelphia,  and  under  his  own 
personal  care  and  supervision;  and  while  no  danger  is  to  be  appre- 
hended from  "disintegration"  upon  the  slip  of  land  between  the 
Delaware  and  Schuylkill,  yet,  from  some  occult  reason,  the  most 
dire  and  disastrous  consequences  were  sure  to  follow  the  exercise 
of  this  wonderful  power  beyond  those  magic  limits. 

The  Constitution  also  authorizes  Congress  "to  borrow  money 
on  the  credit  of  the  United  States,"  and  no  one  seems  disposed  to 
regard  the  unlimited  exercise  of  this  power  as  at  all  dangerous.  It 
also  provides  that  Congress  shall  have  power  to  levy  and  collect 
taxes,  duties,  imposts,  and  excises;  to  regulate  commerce  with  for- 
eign nations  and  the  Indian  tribes;  to  establish  a  unifoi-m  rule  of 
naturalization,  and  uniform  laws  upon  the  subject  of  bankruptcy; 
to  fix  standards  of  weights  and  measures;  to  provide  for  the  pun- 
ishment of  counterfeiting  the  securities  and  cun-ent  coin  of  the 
United  States;  to  establish  post  offices  and  post  roads;  to  x^romote 
the  progress  of  science  and  useful  arts;  to  constitute  tribunals  in- 


446  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

ferior  to  the  Supreme  Court;  to  declare  war  and  grant  letters  of 
marque  and  reprisal;  to  raise  and  support  armies.  Tliese  are  but 
a  few  of  the  great  powers  confided  to  congressional  jurisdiction,  to 
be  exercised  for  the  prosperity  and  development  of  a  great  and  pro- 
gressive people.  It  has  remained  for  Mr.  Pollock  to  discover  that 
at  least  one  of  these  great  j)owers  cannot  be  exercised  beyond  the 
boundaries  of  his  own  town.  He  might  with  the  same  propriety 
propose  to  restrict  the  exercise  of  all  the  rest  within  the  same 
nan'ow  limits. 

Congress  having  availed  itself  of  the  constitutional  grant  to  coin 
money  and  fix  the  valae  thereof,  exercised  this/ 'highest  and  most 
important  attribute  of  national  sovereignty"  by  determining  the 
mode  by  which  the  thing  should  be  done.  Its  functions  ceased  for 
the  time  being  when  the  mint,  or  factory  to  execute  its  mandates, 
was  set  in  motion  for  that  purpose.  No  restrictions  were  placed 
upon  the  quantity  of  coin  to  be  made,  that  being  left  to  be  determ- 
ined by  the  quantity  of  material  furnished  for  the  purpose  and 
the  capacity  of  the  factory  to  work  it  up. 

No  one  but  Mr.  Pollock  is  impressed  with  the  idea  that  every 
time  he  applies  the  necessary  physical  force  to  the  lever  to  swedge 
a  piece  of  nickel  into  the  shape  of  current  coin,  he  is  any  more 
exercising  the  " attributes  of  national  sovereignty"  than  is  eveiy 
day  exercised  by  the  stage  driver  who  cracks  his  whip  over  the  team 
that  draws  the  mail,  or  the  coal-heaver  that  stokes  the  fire  to  gener- 
ate steam  for  its  propulsion  by  water.  All  these  are  simply  doing 
the  physical  labor  necessary  to  accommodate  the  people  with  coins 
and  mails,  in  pursuance  of  different  acts  of  Congress,  predicated 
upon  a  fundamental  grant  of  power.  The  stage  driver  or  the  stoker 
could,  with  quite  as  much  propriety,  give  us  their  disquisitions  upon 
the  constitutional  power,  or  the  dangers  to  be  apprehended  from  its 
exercise,  by  reason  of  "disintegration,"  resulting  from  the  estab- 
lishment of  new  mail  routes  or  increased  speed  upon  the  old  ones, 
as  Mr.  Pollock  has  for  his  absurd  attempt  to  prevent  the  people 
upon  the  Pacific  slope  from  being  accommodated  with  pieces  of  metal 
fashioned  into  money  at  a  Government  factory,  by  virtue  of  pre-ex- 
isting authority. 

Mints,  and  branch  mints,  notwithstanding  all  the  mysterious 
dignity  with  which  Mr.  Pollock  attempts  to  surround  them,  are 
mere  workshops,  or  factories,  established  by  the  Government  for 
the  accommodation  of  the  people,  and  should  be  located  at  points 
convenient  to  where  the  raw  material  is  produced,  in  order  that 
those  engaged  in  that  production  should  enjoy  at  least  some  of  the 
benefits  of  the  fabrication.  The  man  who  is  so  narrow-minded  and 
selfishly  prejudiced  as  to  desire  to  confine  their  operation  to  a  single 
and  inconvenient  point  in  this  great  country,  so  abounding  in  the 
precious  metals,  might  as  readily  urge  that  every  iron-foundiy, 
brick-yard,  saw  and  grist  mill,  blacksmith,  hatter,  and  shoemaker 
shop  necessary  to  accommodate  more  than  thirty  millions  of  people, 
should  be  established  in  the  same  village,  and  thus  check  any  in- 
cipient tendency  toward  "disintegration." 


JAMES   WILLIS   NESMITH-  447 

Why,  sir,  when  the  patriotic  people  of  Oregon,  and  Washington 
and  Idaho  Territories,  read  Pollock's  letter,  and  comprehend  that 
his  report  against  their  proposed  branch  mint  is  based  upon  his 
fears  that  so  petty  a  consideration  should  shake  their  loyalty  or  in- 
duce them  to  become  traitors  to  their  countiy  and  their  flag,  they 
will  simply  treat  his  absurd  theories  with  the  scorn  and  contempt 
they  deserve.  A  public  officer  who,  in  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth 
century,  could  descend  to  indulge  in  such  imputations  against  a 
loyal  and  patriotic  people,  under  the  guise  of  defending  the  Con- 
stitution, has  about  as  much  conception  of  that  instrument  as  the 
grave-worm  has  of  the  intellect  which  once  animated  the  body  upon 
which  it  feeds.  The  author  of  such  vagaries  could  not  excite  the 
anger  of  a  sensible  people,  who,  if  he  were  present  among  them, 
would  be  moved  by  the  highest  dictates  of  humanity  and  philan- 
thropy to  cut  him  for  the  simples. 

We  read  in  the  Scriptures  that  Nebuchadnezzar  fed  upon  grass, 
but  there  is  no  evidence  that  he  ever  became  fit  for  beef;  so  from 
analogy  we  may  infer  that  Pollock,  though  he  directs  and  controls 
a  factory  which  he  regards  as  embodying  all  the  attributes  of  na- 
tional sovereignty,  will  hardly  ever  attain  a  condition  qualifying 
him  for  the  proper  exercise  of  those  high  functions. 

When  my  colleagues  and  myself  went  before  the  Committee  on 
Finance  to  urge  upon  tbem  the  propriety  of  this  measure,  we 
found  oirrselves  laboring  under  some  embarrassment  in  the  produc- 
tion of  conclusive  evidence  in  relation  to  the  quantity  of  gold  being 
produced,  and  likely  to  be  produced,  in  the  region  of  country  to  be 
accommodated  by  the  proposed  branch  mint. 

Owing  to  the  great  distance  which  separates  us  from  our  con- 
stituents, the  delays,  difficulties,  and  uncertainties  of  communica- 
tion with  them,  and  in  part  to  their  own  carelessness  and  neglect  to 
forward  the  necessary  data  upon  which  to  predicate  our  statements, 
we  were  only  able  to  furnish  an  approximate  estimate  of  the  results 
of  their  industry  in  mining  pursuits  during  the  last  year.  With  a 
consciousness  that  we  were  within  bounds,  we  stated  that  our  ex- 
jDortations  of  gold  for  the  last  year  amounted  to  more  than  an  aver- 
age of  one  million  dollars  per  month.  When  called  upon  by  the 
honorable  chairman  of  the  committee  to  submit  our  views  in  writ- 
ing, we  offered  the  following  communication : 

Washington,  January  20th,  1864. 

Sir  :  At  the  suggestion  of  the  committee,  at  its  late  meeting  upon  the  sub- 
ject of  a  branch  mint  proposed  to  be  established  at  the  city  of  Portland,  State  of 
Oregon,  the  undersigned  submit  a  statement  of  facts  which  have  induced  them  to 
ask  the  passage  of  the  bill  now  before  you. 

PreUminary  to  this  we  will  remark  that,  owing  to  the  fact  that  from  the  local 
situation  of  the  mining  region  which  will  be  tributary  to  the  proposed  branch 
mint,  a  large  share  of  the  treasure  passes  out  of  it  by  private  hands,  we  cannot 
pretend  to  give  accurate  statistics  of  its  mineral  products.  The  mines  lie  along 
the  eastern  boundary  of  Oregon,  and  extend  thence  north  and  into  the  British 
Possessions,  and  east  to  the  summit  of  the  Kocky  mountains.  This  region  embrac- 
ing all  of  Idaho  on  the  western  slope,  and  a  large  share  of  the  Tenitory  of  Wash- 
ington and  the  State  of  Oregon,  finds  its  outlet  by  way  of  the  Columbia  river,  and 


448  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

draws  its  supplies  by  the  same  channel.  A  mint  located  at  the  city  of  Portland, 
which  is  the  commercial  mart  of  all  the  country  drained  by  the  Columbia,  would 
accommodate  the  whole  of  this  vast  region,  now  rapidly  filling  with  a  population 
whose  principal,  almost  exclusive,  business  is  that  of  mining. 

The  Territoiy  of  Idaho,  organized  last  March,  did  not  till  within  eighteen 
months  contain  to  exceed  five  hundred  white  persons.  In  the  month  of  October 
last  the  census  taken  by  the  United  States  Marshal  showed  a  population  of  thirty- 
four  thousand.  This  increase  seems  to  indicate  that  the  existence  of  rich  and  ex- 
tensive mines  is  well  established.  A  fair,  candid  estimate  of  the  population  en- 
gaged in  mining  and  to  be  accommodated  by  this  measure  would  probably  place  the 
number  at  fifty  thousand.  And  we  may  add  that  in  proportion  to  the  labor  employ- 
ed, we  believe  no  mines  on  the  western  slope  yield  so  well. 

Much  of  the  treasure  taken  fron  tlfese  mines  finds  its  way  out  of  the  country 
in  the  hands  of  private  individuals.  There  is  no  common  place  of  deposit  for 
it  where  it  can  be  credited  to  its  source,  thus  making  it  almost  impossible  to  estimate 
its  amount  justly.  The  various  express  companies  can  give  the  amount  which 
they  transport,  but  this  leaves  an  immense  amount,  which  any  one  knows  to  ex- 
ist who  is  acquainted  with  the  independent  mode  in  which  a  great  many  persons 
transact  their  business,  thus  entirely  unaccounted  for.  As  an  instance  of  this,  a 
late  Portland  (Oregon)  paper  states  that  the  express  company  brought  down  by  the 
daily  steamer  of  the  Columbia  river  only  $1,000  in  gold  dust,  while  the  same  pa- 
per gives  the  names  of  two  passengers  who  had  over  three  hundred  pounds  in  their 
possession,  and  others  mentioned  had  smaller  amounts.  We  say,  therefore,  that 
while  the  books  and  receipts  of  express  companies  show  the  only  accurate  statis- 
tics on  the  subject,  they  give  no  idea  of  the  vast  resources  in  mineral  of  the  section, 
the  interests  of  which  will  be  accommodated  by  this  measiure. 

Such  data  as  we  have  we  now  submit.  There  are  three  private  assay  offices  in 
the  city  of  Portland.  The  amounts  received  by  them,  as  shown  by  their  books, 
an  abstract  of  which  is  published  in  the  ' '  Oregonian  ' '  newspaper  for  November 
last,  from  January  15th,  1863,  to  October  20th,  following,  is  $2,486,496.65.  As  an 
evidence  of  the  growth  of  the  product  of  gold  we  may  mention  that  one  office, 
making  monthly  statements  of  the  amount  received,  gave  for  each  of  the  two 
months  preceding  the  last  account  almost  double  that  of  those  earlier  in  the  year. 

Mr.  Benjamin  HoUaday,  of  New  York,  who  is  the  owner  of  the  line  of  steam- 
ships plying  between  San  Francisco  and  Portland,  informs  us  that  he  has  trans- 
ported from  Portland  an  average  of  from  six  to  seven  hundred  thousand  dollars 
per  month  during  the  past  summer  and  autumn.  This  statement  does  not  include 
the  amounts  in  the  hands  of  passengers,  of  which  he  knew  nothing,  but  which, 
owing  to  the  high  insurance,  we  must  conclude  were  large. 

There  being  no  regulation  at  the  branch  mint  in  San  Francisco  requiring  the 
depositor  of  bullion  to  designate  whence  it  came,  there  is  no  other  means  of 
obtaining  any  just  estimate  than  by  reports  of  the  kind  to  which  we  refer.  The 
recently  published  reports  from  San  Francisco,  made  by  a  commercial  board  of 
that  city,  of  the  amount  of  bullion  received  there  for  the  past  year,  credits  Ore- 
gon and  British  Columbia  with  a  product  of  five  millions.  This,  of  coiu'se,  is 
based  upon  the  receipts  by  shipments  and  through  express  companies,  and  leaves 
a  vast  amount — the  whole  that  is  diffused  through  the  mining  region  and  that  por- 
tion which  enters  the  circulation  of  business  and  agi*icultural  parts  of  Oregon,  and 
that  shipped  in  the  hands  of  passengers— unaccounted  for.  This,  we  do  not  hesi- 
tate to  say,  we  believe  amounts  to  as  much  more. 

Om-s  is  a  growing  State.  Capital  is  finding  many  new  avenues  of  employment 
and  investment,  and  even  as  far  back  as  1860,  when  our  mining  interest  was  in  its 
infancy,  the  city  of  Portland  was,  in  proportion  to  the  number  of  its  inhabitants, 
the  wealthiest  city  in  the  Union.  So  the  census  of  that  year  will  verify.  We  might 
give  many  items  showing  that  the  mines  tributary  to  the  proposed  branch  mint  are 
very  productive;  but  we  refer  to  only  one,  and  that  only  because  it  came  directly 
to  the  knowledge  of  one  of  the  undersigned.  That  was  an  instance  where  three 
men  in  six  weeks'  time,  with  their  own  hands  dug  out  $180,000.  These  instances 
are  not  common,  we  admit,  but  they  serve  to  show  the  exceeding  richness  of  some 
portions  of  this  northern  region,  and  indicate  the  wealth  which  must  soon  there 
be  developed.  For  the  purpose  of  stimulating  this  development  by  providing  the 
miner  with  a  place  for  the  assay  of  his  gold  without  the  loss  of  time,  the  risk  of 
transmission  by  sea  to  San  Francisco,  and  the  payment  of  expressing  and  insurance 


JAMES  WILLIS   NESMITH.  449 

fees,  and  to  prevent  the  swindling  dealer  in  coin  from  robbing  tbe  miner  of  his 
fair  earnings  by  his  unjust  discoiint,  which  many  prefer  to  submit  to  rather  than 
the  inconvenience  just  alluded  to,  we  ask  you  to  consider  the  proposition  favorably^ 

J.  W.  NESMITH, 
B.  F.  HARDING, 
JOHN  K.  McBRIDE. 

Hon.  W.  P.  Fessenden, 

Chairman  of  Senate  Finance  Connnittee. 

As  auxiliary  to  this  statement,  we  laid  before  tlie  committee  tbe 
following  extracts  from  well  known  and  credible  Oregon  newspa- 
pers relative  to  the  production  of  gold  solely  within  the  State  of 
Oregon  : 

The  Gold  and  Silveb  Mixes  of  Owyhee. — The  news  from  the  Owyhee  mining 
district  is  sufficient  to  warrant  the  proud  assertion  that  Oregon  and  Idaho  territory 
will  soon  be  recognized  as  the  richest  countries  in  mineral  wealth  on  the  face  of  the 
globe.  Mr.  Luther  Hasbrook,  a  gentleman  who  has  just  returned  from  the  Owy- 
hee, called  upon  us  on  Thursday  last  and  exhibited  to  us  a  sack  full  of  quartz  speci- 
mens, taken  mostly  from  the  Oro  Fino,  Morning  Star,  Evening  Star,  and  Noonday 
lodes.  Contrary  to  the  usual  custom  of  selecting  the  richest  specimens  for  assay, 
Mr.  H.  brought  down  with  him  every  character  of  rock  which  had  been  obtained 
in  the  lode,  from  the  richest  to  the  poorest.  A  chemical  analysis  of  that  taken 
from  the  Oro  Fino  shows  a  valuation  of  $22,000  per  ton,  with  the  proportion 
of  §3,000  per  ton  in  silver.  From  the  Morning  Star  an  average  of  $11,000  in  gold 
and  $2,000  in  silver  has  been  taken  from  a  ton  of  the  rock.  The  Evening  Star  is 
said  to  equal  the  Morning  Star,  while  the  Noonday,  it  is  believed,  ^vill  surpass  all 
the  others  in  richness.  The  above  mentioned  are  all  the  lodes  that  have  as  yet 
been  thoroughly  prospected,  though  many  others  have  been  located  and  will  be 
opened  as  soon  as  labor  will  accompUsh  it.  Mr.  Hasbrook  could  not  recollect  the 
names  of  all  the  different  lodes  which  have  been  claimed,  but  mentions  the  follow- 
ing :  Oro  Fino,  Morning  Star,  Evening  Star,  Noonday,  Union,  Whisky  Gulch, 
Last  Chance,  Claremont,  Highland,  War  Eagle,  North  Pole,  South  Pole,  New  York, 
Empire,  Silver  Gray,  and  Moonhght. 

The  above  and  a  large  number  of  others  are  found  in  a  district  of  about  five 
miles  square,  though  Mr.  Hasbrook  assures  us  that  there  is  not  the  slightest  doubt 
of  the  entire  Owyhee  valley  proving  equally  rich.  Nor  is  the  mineral  wealth  con- 
fined to  the  Owyhee  exclusively,  but  to  the  whole  country  for  fifty  miles  around. 
Aside  from  the  gold-bearing  quartz  lodes,  several  ledges  have  been  discovered 
which  rival  the  richest  of  the  Washoe  or  Esmeralda  districts. 

If  the  above  reports  be  true,  (and  there  is  very  httle  reason  to  doubt  them)  we 
may  rest  assured  that  the  following  season  will  witness  the  largest  emigration  to 
that  region  ever  yet  known.  The  great  success  of  the  miners  during  the  past  sea- 
son has  given  encouragement  to  enterprising  men  everywhere,  and  instead  of  be- 
ing regarded  as  a  humbug,  the  richness  and  extent  of  our  mines  is  acknowledged 
by  all. 


Mormon  Basin. — From  Mr.  Perry,  a  gentleman  who  has  spent  the  summer  in 
Mormon  Basin,  we  derive  the  following  in  relation  to  this  mining  district.  About 
two  hundred  and  fifty  men  have  been  at  work  in  the  Basin  during  the  summer,  and 
their  average  pay  has  been  fully  up  to  the  Boise  standard.  Indeed,  it  is  thought 
that  if  they  had  an  abundance  of  water  in  the  Basin  it  would  be  the  best  mining 
camp  in  the  northern  country.  Working  with  a  rocker,  the  best  day's  work  made 
was  $225.  The  average  pay  was  ten  dollars  per  day  to  the  hand.  The  gold  is  of 
a  superior  quality,  and  assays  over  seventeen  dollars  per  ounce.  On  Clark's  Creek, 
distant  seven  miles  from  the  Basin,  one  hundred  men  have  been  at  work,  making 
good  wages.  Many  of  the  miners  have  come  out  to  winter,  and  it  is  thought  that 
not  more  than  one  hundred  and  fifty  men  wiU  winter  in  the  mines.  All  through 
the  summer  there  was  a  great  demand  for  men.    To  laborers  five  dollars  per  day 

29 


450  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

•was  paid,  and  considering  the  difference  in  the  cost  of  living,  this  is  quite  as  good 
as  six  dollars  in  Boise.  In  the  spring  there  will  be  a  great  demand  for  hands,  and 
it  is  not  unlikely  that  wages  will  go  up  to  Six  dollars.  Mr.  Perry  brought  down 
with  him  several  plethoric  purses,  filled  with  Mormon  Basin  dust.  It  is  coarser 
than  that  from  Boise,  and  in  the  lot  that  we  examined  there  were  many  pieces  that 
would  weigh  from  one  to  two  dollars.  "Without  doubt.  Mormon  Basin  is  a  rich 
mining  district,  and  with  another  year  a  large  amount  of  treasure  will  be  taken 
out. — Mountaineer. 


Tons  or  Gold. — The  Nez  Perce  Chief  brought  down  last  evening  the  richest 
freight  that  any  steamer  on  the  Columbia  river  ever  bore.  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  had 
183  pounds,  ($35,000);  one  party  of  six  miners  had  800  pounds.  ($150,600); 
another  party  of  six  men  had  700  pounds,  ($134,400  ;)  another  partv  of  two  men 
had  300  pounds,  ($57,600) ;  while  one  man  had  150  pounds,  ($28,000).  Thus  we 
have  a  total  of  1,950  pounds  ($370,600)  in  the  hands  of  fifteen  "  honest  miners," 
and  183  pounds  ($35,000)  in  the  hands  of  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  All  of  these  fif- 
teen persons  our  informant,  who  came  down  in  the  Chief,  saw  and  conversed  with. 
He  also  learned  that  nearly  all  the  passengers  had  plenty  of  money.  So  it  is  fair 
to  conclude  that  two  tons  of  gold  dust  came  down  on  the  Chief  last  evening. — Dal- 
les Journal. 

From  our  own  personal  knowledge  of  that  country,  and  our  ac- 
quaintance with  gentlemen  making  these  and  similar  statements,  we 
are  satisfied  of  their  reliability. 

The  region  of  country  which  will  be  accommodated  by  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  proposed  branch  mint  extends  from  the  forty-sec- 
ond to  the  forty-ninth  parallels  of  latitude,  and  from  the  Pacific 
ocean  to  the  Rocky  mountains,  embracing  an  area  about  eight  times 
the  size  of  the  great  State  of  New  York,  or  about  six  times  as  large 
as  the  New  England  States.  Throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of 
this  vast  region,  with  the  exception  of  but  a  few  localities,  both  gold 
and  silver  abounds  in  inexhaustible  quantities.  But  a  few  short 
years  since  I  saw  it  an  uninhabited  wilderness,  except  that  portion 
occupied  by  Indians,  much  of  it  apparently  sterile  and  unproduc- 
tive, and  as  was  then  thought  by  many,  perfectly  valueless.  To- 
day it  contains  two  hundred  thousand  busy,  enterprising,  indus- 
trious, and  intelligent  people,  forming  a  nucleus  around  which  mil- 
lions will  be  found  within  a  few  brief  years.  During  the  last  year 
its  scattered  and  meagre  population,  with  but  few  conveniences  or 
facilities,  and  with  rude  appliances,  produced  $15,000,000  in  gold. 
This  year  that  product  will  be  more  than  trebled,  and  that  ratio  of 
production  will  continue  in  the  proportion  that  an  industrious  and 
energetic  population  is  supplied  from  the  older  States  and  from  for- 
eign countries,  until  the  production  of  the  precious  metals  of  that 
auriferous  region  will  amount  to  $1,000,000,000  per  annum. 

Who,  sir,  would  have  had  the  temerity  a  few  short  years  since  to 
have  predicted  the  vast  revolution  to  be  wrought  in  commerce,  in- 
dustry, national  prosperity,  and  general  enterprise  by  the  discovery 
of  gold  upon  the  Pacific  slope? 

One  morning  in  the  year  1848,  Bennett  and  Marshall,  two  indi- 
viduals unknown  to  fame,  picked  up  some  pieces  of  yellow  sub 
stance  in  Captain  Sutter's  mill-race,  on  the  American  river  near 
Coloma,  California.  Those  men,  quite  as  unconscious  of  the  mag- 
nificent results  to  flow  from  their  discovery  as  was  Columbus  when 


JA3IES   WILLIS   NESMITH.  451 

he  first  beheld  the  glimmering  light  upon  the  shores  of  America, 
held  in  their  hands  the  germ  that  was  to  give  a  new  impetus  to  the 
progress  of  the  world.  What  has  resulted  from  the  discover}^  made 
by  those  two  almost  unknown  men,  though  it  has  astonished  and 
filled  mankind  with  amazement,  is  but  the  precursor  of  what  is  to 
follow  when  the  vast  mining  regions  of  Oregon,  Washington,  and 
Idaho  have  their  mining  resources  more  fully  developed.  As  yet 
nothing  has  been  accomplished  upon  the  Pacific  coast  but  a  mere 
scratching  of  the  surface.  With  machineiy,  capital,  systematized 
labor,  and  good  roads  afibrding  facilities  for  ingi-ess  and  egress,  and 
the  cheaper  transportation  of  necessary  supplies,  the  production  of 
gold  and  silver  will  be  increased  a  thousand  fold,  and  the  nation 
will  have  in  its  own  public  domain,  so  rich  in  precious  metals,  re- 
sources ample  for  the  liquidation  of  our  public  debt,  even  if  we 
should  be  compelled  to  battle  with  treason  and  secession  for  another 
generation  to  come. 

It  does  seem  to  me,  Mr.  President,  that  the  Government,  instead 
of  pursuing  a  niggardly  policy  toward  the  hardy  pioneei*s  engaged 
in  developing  the  region  to  which  I  have  referred,  should  extend 
toward  them  all  reasonable  facihties  for  the  successful  promotion  of 
an  entei-prise  so  fraught  with  the  present  and  prospective  interests 
of  the  nation. 

The  world  changes,  and  he  who  attempts  to  oppose  its  mutations 
in  place  of  accommodating  himself  to  them,  can  lay  no  claims  to 
statesmanship.  When  the  Alleghanies  were  the  western  limit  of 
the  Union,  and  our  annual  gold  production  and  coinage  was  about 
two  hundred  and  thirty-three  thousand  dollars,  as  it  was  on  an  aver- 
age for  the  twenty-four  years  from  1793  to  1817,  then,  when  Presi- 
dents, Cabinets,  and  members  of  Congress,  together  with  the  more 
respectable  portions  of  mankind,  refused  to  send  messages  by  tele- 
graph, use  postage  stamps,  or  ride  upon  railroads,  then  the  JVIint  at 
Philadelphia  was  at  the  hub  of  the  American  universe  and  in  a 
central  position,  and  could  accommodate  the  nation.  At  present 
there  is  no  more  use  or  propriety  in  its  being  there  than  there 
would  be  in  sending  warming-pans  to  the  East  Indies,  temperance 
lecturers  to  the  State  of  Maine,  Christian  missionaries  to  Massa- 
chusetts, or  steam  cotton-presses  to  Terra  del  Fuego. 

The  little  old  man  who  so  complacently  sits  in  the  little  old  Gov- 
ernment workshop  in  Philadelphia,  exercising  **  the  highest  func- 
tions of  national  sovereignty'*  by  coining  $3,000,000  of  gold  a  year, 
while  the  Pacific  slope  is  producing  $100,000,000  and  wants  it 
coined  into  a  circulating  medium,  will  eventually  have  to  yield  to 
the  logic  of  current  events  and  take  his  shop  to  the  gold,  for  the 
reason  that  the  gold  will  not  come  to  his  shop. 

This  is  a  progressive  world  and  a  progressive  people  in  a  pro- 
gressive age.  Commerce,  enteq^rise,  and  the  great  interests  of 
mankind  will  not  be  trifled  with  or  retarded  by  the  theories  of  a  by- 
gone era.  Those  who  are  too  prejudiced  or  too  stubborn  to  yield 
must  clear  the  track,  or  be  crushed  by  the  car  of  progress.  The 
adoption  of  a  liberal  and  magnanimous  policy  on  the  part  of  Con- 


452  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

gress  toward  the  remote  States  and  Territories  is  calculated  to  cher- 
ish and  foster  the  innate  love  of  our  people  for  our  G-overnment 
and  institutions.  No  recipients  of  such  generous  favors  are  likely 
to  regard  them  as  an  inducement  to  secession  or  "  disintegration/' 
especially  when  the  disturbing  causes  which  have  led  to  our  present 
difficulties  have  no  existence  with  them.  This  is  true  of  the  States 
and  Territories  upon  the  Pacific.  It  is  true  that  a  branch  mint  was 
one  of  the  institutions  conferred  upon  the  southern  States  by  the 
liberality  of  Congress,  and  was  located  at  New  Orleans.  That  bless- 
ing, like  any  other  conferred  upon  that  region,  was  perverted  and 
abused  in  the  mad  career  of  a  people  determined  to  make  slavery- 
general  and  freedom  local;  but  there  is  not  a  j)article  of  evidence 
that  it  furnished  any  more  inducement  to  the  consummation  of  seces- 
sion and  rebellion  than  any  other  of  the  thousands  of  blessings  that 
the  southern  people  derived  from  their  connection  with  the  Union. 
This  folly  had  its  origin  in  other  causes,  prominent  among  which 
was  the  absurd  claim  that  State  sovereignty  was  paramount  to  na- 
tional authority.  The  seeds  of  secession  and  rebellion,  with  all  their 
concomitant  curses  and  crimes,  had  been  sown  broadcast  by  promi- 
nent southern  statesmen  for  a  period  of  more  than  thirty  years,  un- 
der the  fascinating  designation  of  State's  rights,  and  were  assiduously 
cultivated  by  pretenders  who  claimed  to  be  the  embodiment  of  all 
that  was  chivalrous. 

Mr.  President,  in  order  to  refute  the  visionary  theories  of  what 
I  regard  as  an  insane  man,  I  have  thus  been  led  to  repel  mere  asser- 
tions which  would  not  be  of  the  slightest  consequence,  were  it  not, 
imf ortunately,  for  the  official  position  which  by  accident  he  happens 
to  occupy.  I  regret  exceedingly  that  circumstances  beyond  my  con- 
trol have  compelled  me  to  waste  so  much  ammunition  upon  such 
very  small  game. 

It  may  possibly  be  urged,  sir,  that  with  a  parent  mint  at  Philadel- 
phia, and  a  branch  mint  at  San  Francisco,  no  more  mining  facilities 
are  required,  and  that  gold  will  seek  the  locality  where  it  can  be 
coined  the  cheapest.  I  dispose  of  all  such  arguments  by  stating 
that  during  the  last  fiscal  year  the  branch  mint  at  San  Francisco,  by 
being  worked  to  its  utmost  capacity,  was  only  able  to  coin  gold  to 
the  amount  of  $17,510,963,  while  only  $3,340,931.74  reached  and 
was  coined  at  Mr.  Pollock's  old  curiosity  shop  in  Philadelphia.  It 
should  also  be  borne  in  mind  that  at  Philadelphia  the  Government 
charge  for  ''parting  "  as  it  is  technically  called,  was  only  five  cents 
per  ounce,  while  at  San  Francisco  it  was  fourteen  cents  per  ounce. 
This  data  proves  conclusively  that  gold  seeks  the  nearest  mint  for 
coinage,  and  that  the  extra  charge  of  nine  cents  per  ounce  for 
"parting"  bears  no  sort  of  proportion  to  the  expense  and  delays  of 
transporting  gold  to  the  parent  mint  at  Philadelphia.  When,  be- 
sides, it  is  taken  into  consideration  that  the  Government  levies  and 
collects  a  tax  upon  all  money  coined  at  their  establishments  equal  to 
the  expense  of  coinage,  I  am  unable  to  perceive  how  she  can  lose  in 
a  pecuniary  point  by  the  adoption  of  a  measure  which  provides  for 
reimbursing  her  for  all  her  outlay.     Surely  the  amount  asked  for  by 


JAMES  WILLIS  NESMITH.  453 

the  bill  is  a  paltry  sum.  You  expend  Tnthout  a  murmur  a  larger 
sum  every  month  in  what  is  called  "decorating  the  subterranean 
passages"  of  this  building  with  gaudy  daubs,  intended,  as  I  suppose, 
to  represent  mountains,  cascades,  beasts,  birds,  and  pei*sons,  which 
never  existed  except  in  the  distempered  brain  of  the  artist  engaged 
in  producing  them. 

The  wealth,  the  population,  and  political  power  of  this  Repub- 
lic are  progressing  westward  with  as  much  certainty  and  resistless 
power  as  causes  the  light  and  heat  of  the  morning  sun  to  flow  in  the 
same  direction.  You  can  neither  ignore  the  fact  nor  retard  its  con- 
summation, but  you  may  for  a  brief  period  embarrass  it  by  a  refusal 
to  comply  with  the  just  demands  of  our  people,  for  the  same  na- 
tional benefits  conferred  by  the  common  Government  upon  older 
and  more  favored  portions  of  the  country. 

With  a  firm  consciousness  of  the  justice  and  propriety  of  my 
amendment,  I  invoke  the  aid  of  Senators  to  procure  its  adoption. 


^Y/^^^^a^^ 


SAMUEL  BRANNAN 

^Y    )VlLLIAM    J.     ]VeLLS. 


Ij^EW  names  among  the  prominent  pioneers  of  California 
have  been  more  intimately  associated  with  the  his- 
tory of  the  State  than  that  of  Mr.  Erannan.  A  review  of 
many  of  the  principal  enterprises  for  internal  or  metro- 
politan improvement  during  the  last  twenty  years,  would 
reveal  him  as  their  zealous  advocate  and  master  mind, 
either  as  the  originator  or  the  active  promoter ;  and  it 
may  be  truly  said  of  him  that  he  has  not  been  surpassed 
by  any  individual  in.  the  State  in  his  encouragement  of 
industrial  progress. 

Mr.  Brannan  was  born  in  Saco,  in  the  State  of  Maine, 
in  1819.  He  immigrated  to  Lake  County,  Ohio,  in  1833, 
where  he  entered  upon  an  apprenticeship  to  letter-press 
printing.  Before  the  term  of  his  indenture  was  com- 
pleted, he  bought  up,  in  1836,  the  remainder  of  his  time, 
and  although  a  mere  youth,  entered  into  the  great  land 
speculations  at  an  era  when  the  whole  country  was  seized 
with  the  mania  of  making  fortunes  without  the  worrying 
need  of  time,  trouble,  or  capital.  A  year  later  he  turned 
again  to  the  press,  and  traveled  the  country  as  a  journey- 
man printer.  In  the  course  of  the  five  following  years 
he  visited  most  of  the  States  of  the  Union.  In  1842,  he 
established  and  published  in  New  York  a  weekly  news- 
paper, styled  the  New  York  2fessenger. 

As  early  as  1846  he  formed  a  company  of  pioneers  to 
settle  upon  the  distant  and  then  unknown  shores  of  Cali- 


456  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC), 

fornia,  and  the  ship  BrooMyn^  in  which,  with  two  hundred 
and  thirty  immigrants,  he  sailed  from  New  York,  arrived 
at  San  Francisco  in  July  of  the  same  year.  When  Mr. 
Brannan  first  landed  in  California  he  was  about  twenty- 
six  years  of  age.  He  at  once  became  a  leading  and 
influential  member  of  the  isolated  little  community,  and 
soon  after  his  arrival  he  erected  the  machinery  of  two 
flour  mills,  in  a  locality  answering  to  what  is  now  Clay 
street.  These  were  the  first  introduced  into  the  country. 
He  also,  in  January,  1847,  projected  and  published  a 
weekly  newspaper,  called  the  California  Star^  which  was 
the  first  journal  that  appeared  in  San  Francisco,  and  was 
the  parent  of  the  present  Alta  California.  All  this  was 
before  the  discovery  of  gold,  and  when  the  early  settlers 
little  suspected  that  the  progress  and  development  of 
their  new  and  distant  home  would  be  aided  by  any  of 
the  remarkable  events  that  soon  after  made  California  a 
centre-point  of  attraction  for  the  whole  world. 

In  the  fall  of  1847,  Mr.  Brannan  opened  a  store  at 
Sutter's  Fort,  under  the  name  of  C.  C.  Smith  &  Co. 
This  was  the  first  establishment  of  the  kind  formed  in 
the  Sacramento  Yalley.  In  the  spring  of  1848,  he 
bought  out  Mr.  Smith,  who  shortly  afterwards  returned 
to  the  Atlantic  States  possessed  of  a  handsome  fortune. 
Mr.  Brannan  continued  the  business  during  the  heat  of 
the  gold  excitement,  and  there  laid  the  foundation  of  his 
present  great  wealth.  In  1849,  he  returned  to  San  Fran- 
cisco, where  he  had  preserved  a  residence  and  citizenship, 
and,  under  the  firm  of  Osborn  &  Brannan,  conducted  an 
extensive  business  for  nearly  a  year  in  Chinese  merchan- 
dise. In  the  noted  affair  of  ''the  Hounds,"  about  mid- 
summer of  that  year,  he  took  a  leading  part,  and  was 
active  in  extirpating  that  band  of  desperadoes  from 
the  city.  In  August  following,  he  was  elected  a  member 
of  the  first  regular  Town  Council;  and  in  1851  was 
chosen  President  of  the  famous  "Vigilance  Committee." 
About  the  end  of  1851,  Mr.  Brannan  visited  the  Sand- 
wich Islands,  where  he  bought  extensive  properties  in 
farming  land,  and  real  estate  in  Honolulu.  In  1853,  he 
was  elected  a  State  Senator  of  California. 


SA31UEL   BRANNAN.  457 

It  is  impossible  in  our  narrow  limits  even  to  allude 
to  the  numberless  public  affairs  in  which  this  gentleman 
has  been  engaged.  The  cause  of  education  always  found 
in  him  an  ardent  supporter.  He  was  one  of  the  founders 
of  the  first  school  in  San  Francisco,  and  contributed 
liberally  to  the  edifice.  Many  of  the  most  elegant 
structures  in  the  city  were  built  by  him,  and  there  is 
scarcely  an  institution  of  public  usefulness  that  has  not 
experienced  the  benefits  of  his  impulsive  generosity. 
Libraries;  institutes;  lectures  for  charitable  purposes; 
churches;  Sunday  schools;  works  of  art;  literary  so- 
cieties; military  companies;  hospitals;  poor  artists, 
authors,  and  editors;  needy  inventors,  and  suffering 
humanity  generally,  of  whatever  religion  or  nationality, 
have  had  cause  gratefully  to  remember  his  liberality. 
N^ot  only  associations  of  public  beneficence  have  found  a 
friend  in  Mr.  Brannan,  but  he  has  been  a  pioneer  in,  and 
a  liberal  encourager  of,  a  curious  variety  of  enterprises, 
embracing  some  of  the  most  useful  branches  of  California 
industry.  The  importation,  via  Panama,  of  rare  breeds 
of  French  and  Spanish  merino  sheep,  at  a  time  when 
the  success  of  such  investment  was  problematical;  the 
collection  throughout  France,  Spain,  and  Italy,  of  choice 
varieties  of  grape  cuttings,  he  having  visited  Europe  in 
1857  for  that  and  other  purposes;  the  reclaiming  of  tule- 
land  along  the  San  Joaquin  river,  thus  setting  the  ex- 
ample to  others;  the  raising  of  blood  stock,  and  the 
improvement  of  his  extensive  farming  lands  in  various 
parts  of  the  State,  have  divided  his  attention  with  the 
management  of  his  real  estate  in  San  Francisco.  The 
Pacific  Railroad,  Overland  Telegraph,  Express  Companies, 
banking  and  insurance  and  loan  associations — enterprises 
connected  with  and  forming  the  very  essence  of  the  pros- 
perity of  California — all  of  these  have  found  in  Mr.  Bran- 
nan  one  of  their  most  ready  and  intelligent  cooperators. 

In  1868,  he  purchased  the  entire  landed  estates  of 
Abel  Stearns  in  Los  Angeles  county,  embracing  an  area 
of  about  one  hundred  and  seventy  thousand  acres,  which 
resulted  in  the  opening  of  those  extensive  tracts  to  set- 
tlement by  small  farmers,  thus  greatly  stimulating  the 


458  EEPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

industry  of  that  portion  of  the  State.  In  the  silver 
mining  regions  of  Eastern  Nevada,  Mr.  Brannan's  restless 
business  talents  have  also  been  exerted,  in  the  erection 
at  Robinson  District  of  saw  mills,  quartz  mills,  and 
smelting  works,  the  building  of  toll  roads,  and  develop- 
ment of  one  of  the  richest  mineral  districts  in  that  State ; 
together  with  the  location  of  valuable  tracts  of  timber 
and  agricultural  lands  near  Mineral  City  and  in  Steptoe 
Yalley. 

From  among  his  numerous  enterprises,  we  may  par- 
ticularize the  instance  of  Napa  Yalley,  where  he  is  the 
proprietor  of  the  Calistoga  Hot  Springs,  and  a  valuable 
estate  of  three  thousand  acres  surrounding  them.  Here, 
his  all-pervading  activity  has  created  out  of  bare  nature 
the  principal  watering  place  in  California,  not  inaptly 
termed  the  ^^  Saratoga  of  the  Pacific  Coast."  This  famous 
place  of  fashionable  resort  is  too  well  known  in  Cali- 
fornia to  require  any  extended  description  at  our  hands. 
Its  climate,  rivaling  the  most  celebrated  localities  of 
Italy  or  the  south  of  France,  and  the  scenery,  uniting 
the  grandeur  of  the  loftiest  summits  of  the  coast  range 
with  the  pastoral  features  of  the  adjacent  rich  farming 
country,  have  made  Calistoga  the  favorite  resort  of  tour- 
ists and  invalids  from  all  parts  of  the  country.  This 
costly  scene  of  comfort  and  healthful  recreation  Mr. 
Brannan  has  reared  by  his  own  unaided  resources,  and 
the  effect  of  his  far-reaching  enterprise  is  felt  in  the  im- 
petus he  has  given  to  the  prosperity  of  all  that  section 
of  the  State.  The  Napa  Valley  Railroad,  connecting 
Calistoga  with  tide  water  at  Yallejo,  is  especially  due  to 
his  persistent  energy. 

We  cannot  close  this  imperfect  sketch  without  record- 
ing the  unwavering  and  outspoken  loyalty  of  Mr.  Bran- 
nan  to  the  cause  of  the  Union  in  the  darkest  periods  of 
its  trial  by  fire  and  sword.  On  the  stump,  in  the  press, 
among  the  people,  his  voice  has  been  heard  in  emphatic 
denunciation  of  the  rebellion,  and  his  contributions  in 
aid  of  the  cause  he  espoused  were  unstinted  in  fitting 
out  officers  for  the  war,  in  printing  and  disseminating 
loyal  documents,  and   in   evexy  way  strengthening  the 


SAMUEL   BRANNAN.  459 

hands  of  the  Government.  In  the  second  Lincoln  cam- 
paign, Mr.  Rrannan  was  chosen  as  one  of  the  Presidential 
Electors  from  California.  During  that  memorable  con- 
test he  canvassed  the  northern  part  of  the  State^  and 
aided  materially  in  carrying  the  Union  ticket.  His  gen- 
erous sympathies  were  not  confined  to  his  native  land. 
The  cause  of  freedom  in  Mexico,  menaced  by  the  French 
intervention,  received  his  substantial  aid.  In  1866,  he 
armed  and  equipped  at  his  own  expense  a  company  to 
join  President  Juarez,  and  these  recruits,  composed  of 
hardy  and  experienced  frontiersmen,  rendered  important 
services  in  expelling  the  foreign  invaders. 

Mr.  Brannan  is  a  signal  example  of  the  American 
self-made  man.  Starting  in  life  a  poor  boy,  thrown  early 
on  his  own  resources,  and  with  few  of  the  advantages 
possessed  by  the  youth  of  the  succeeding  generation,  he 
had  the  sagacity  to  foresee  the  mighty  future  of  the 
Pacific  coast,  and  the  pluck  and  energy  to  avail  himself 
of  the  circumstances  of  the  times.  As  his  influence  in 
the  community  has  thus  far  been  beneficial  to  the  welfare 
of  California,  so  it  is  equally  certain  that  it  will  continue 
to  be  exerted  for  the  best  interests  of  his  adopted  State. 


PHILIP  L.  EDWARDS 

^    JlOBERT   p.    pi^PEI^ 


PHILIP  Legget  Edwards  was  born  in  Breckenridge 
county,  Kentucky,  on  the  14th  of  July,  1812;  died 
the  1st  of  May,  1869;  hence  he  was  fifty-six  years,  nine 
months,  and  seventeen  days  old.  His  father  and  mother, 
Thomas  Edwards  and  Jane  Edwards,  (whose  maiden  name 
was  Jane  Cunningham)  were  both  natives  of  Virginia. 
At  quite  an  early  period  they  bade  farewell  to  their  native 
home,  and  marched  westward  to  the  then  frontier  State 
of  Kentucky.  Enterprise,  coupled  with  adventure — the 
love  of  unrestrained  freedom  to  enjoy  the  extended  fields 
of  nature  ere  they  had  been  incumbered  with  a  dense 
population — w^ere  leading  characteristics  of  the  Edwards 
family. 

Virginia  had,  it  is  true,  more  of  the  comforts  of  life 
and  promises  of  leisure  than  the  wilderness  west  of  the 
Alleghanies  could  ofier ;  yet  the  father  of  Colonel  Edwards 
stopped  not  to  consider  a  life  of  ease  in  the  land  of  his 
birthplace,  but  eagerly  sought  to  lead  the  van  of  empire, 
whose  path  was  westward.  His  move  from  the  scenes  of 
his  childhood,  instead  of  satisfying  his  desire  to  see  new 
places  and  fasten  his  attachment  for  a  particular  locality, 
rather  stimulated  his  inclination  still  farther  west,  for  in 
1824  he  was  again  on  the  road  of  emigration,  this  time 
to  the  outposts  of  the  white  settlements  in  the  State  of 
Missouri. 


462       REPRESENTATIVE  MEN  OF  THE  PACIFIC. 

He  located  at  Old  Franklin,  in  Howard  county,  on 
the  Missouri  river;  afterwards  moved  to  Ray  county,  in 
that  State,  where  he  resided  until  1850,  at  w^hich  time  he 
took  up  the  line  of  march  for  California.  He  lived  to  be 
quite  an  old  man ;  was  resident  of  Nevada  county  several 
years,  where,  two  or  three  years  since,  his  career  on  earth 
was  brought  to  a  close. 

Colonel  P.  L.  Edwards,  the  subject  of  this  sketch, 
(the  title  Colonel  was  acquired  during  the  Mormon 
troubles  in  Missouri,  1841)  commenced  teaching  school 
at  the  age  of  twenty-one,  in  the  village  of  Richmond, 
Ray  county,  Missouri.  That  avocation,  which  of  all 
others  is  best  calculated  to  discipline  the  mind,  to  incul- 
cate method  both  of  thought  and  action,  systematize 
reflection,  and  enable  the  inquiring  mind  to  arrive  at  just 
conclusions,  was  entered  by  him  just  as  youth  had 
ripened  into  manhood.  This  is  the  most  important  point 
in  the  life  of  every  man,  for  at  this  period  the  tender 
cares  of  the  mother,  the  wise  admonitions  and  counsel 
of  the  father,  culminate  and  unmistakably  direct  him  to 
assume  responsibilities  which  he  never  before  held,  and 
lay  out  the  course  which  he  would  follow  through  an 
active,  living  world. 

With  a  full  supply  of  common  sense;  naturally  kind^ 
eager  to  learn ;  faculties  capable  of  receiving  and  inclina- 
tion to  acquire  knowledge;  he  commenced  the  active 
duties  of  manhood  in  that  praiseworthy  calling  of  im- 
parting information  to  the  innocent  youth;  and  doubtless 
he  also  commenced  the  cultivation  of  those  traits  of 
character  which  endeared  him  to  his  friends,  and  formed 
that  frame-work  of  esteem  and  respect  that  elevated  him, 
wherever  he  resided,  far  above  suspicion,  even  of  the 
most  vicious.  That  honesty  of  purpose,  love  of  truth^ 
independent  thought,  earnest  action,  gratitude  to  friends^ 
and  leniency  towards  antagonists,  which  he  taught  the 
young  under  his  tutelage,  he  also  practiced  himself.  Next 
to  that  of  character,  his  fondest  theme  for  the  study  of 
the  young  was  the  understanding  of  words.  This  theory 
he  strictly  pursued  in  all  his  readings  as  well  as  his 
writings.     No  man  systematically  analyzed  the  subject 


PHILIP   L.    EDWARDS.  463 

under  consideration  more  completely  than  he.  Its  sev- 
eral branches  he  would  unravel  in  detail,  and  unite  the 
various  collateral  definitions  as  well  as  join  the  main  line 
in  one  aggregated  conclusion,  and  express  the  same  in 
languag(5  sujfficiently  terse,  perspicuous,  and  comprehens- 
ible to  bring  it  within  the  scope  of  the  simplest  mind. 

Frank,  energetic,  and  industrious,  he  moved  in  any 
cause  in  which  he  engaged  with  a  zest  and  ardor  to  suc- 
ceed, not  only  to  the  understanding  of  the  surface,  but 
the  cause,  the  wherefore,  and  the  groundwork,  as  well  as 
the  superstructure.  The  glittering  varnish  on  the  outer 
lines  of  the  work  might  please  his  eye,  but  the  plan  of 
the  architecture,  the  base  and  foundation  of  the  whole 
structure,  were  subjects  of  far  greater  importance  to  him. 
The  experience  of  those  who  had  gone  before  him,  the 
theories  of  government,  the  life  and  character  of  states- 
men, the  mysteries  of  politics,  the  teachings  of  theology, 
the  works  of  the  poets,  the  facts  of  the  historian,  the 
tales  of  life  and  stories  of  romance,  all  received  his  at- 
tention; and  although  the  taste  he  nurtured  for  reading 
while  the  bloom  of  youth  was  on  his  cheek  may  have 
become  somewhat  abated  as  age  advanced,  yet  he  con- 
tinued the  habit  of  much  reading  down  to  the  day  of 
his  death.  This,  coupled  with  his  abundance  of  kind- 
ness for  all,  and  ill-will  towards  none,  is  the  explanation 
of  that  remarkable  faculty  he  had  in  making  every  one 
easy  in  and  fond  of  his  company.  If  the  man  of  letters 
was  present,  he  could  readily  draw  upon  the  rich  store- 
house of  information  at  his  own  command,  and  never  fail 
to  entertain  as  well  as  inform  his  hearer.  The  illiterate 
would  feel  easy  in  conversation  with  him,  because  in 
his  pleasant  and  unassuming  style,  he  would  anticipate 
their  deficiency,  and  supply  it  for  them  in  such  a  friendly 
manner,  they  would  fail  to  discover  their  own  ignorance 
in  their  admiration  of  the  Colonel's  great  good  nature, 
manifested  in  understanding  them,  however  awkwardly 
they  expressed  themselves.  He  was  a  man  full  of  humor, 
indulged  frequently  in  anecdotes,  and  highly  enjoyed  a 
good  joke  well  told. 

During  the  second  year  of  his  school,  his  health  be- 


464  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

came  rather  feeble.  Just  at  this  time,  a  party  was 
organized,  some  of  the  members  intending  to  trade  with 
the  Indians  on  the  plains;  others  to  perform  missionary 
duties  among  them  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains ;  others 
again  were  seeking  to  inform  themselves  of  the  topog- 
raphy and  resources  of  the  wild,  uninhabited  ^'West." 
Of  the  traders.  Captain  N".  J.  Wyeth  was  the  most  prom- 
inent; Jason  Lee  had  charge  of  the  missionary  division; 
Townsend,  and  Nutall,  the  distinguished  naturalist,  and 
Captain  Steward,  afterwards  Lord  Clyde,  were  seeking 
pleasure  and  information.  The  Colonel  joined  the  party, 
mainly  to  improve  his  health,  and  at  the  same  time  to 
satisfy  an  inclination  to  explore  the  unfrequented  plains 
and  mountains  of  which  at  that  time  so  little  was  known. 

The  party  left  Independence,  Missouri,  on  the  25th 
of  April,  1834.  On  the  15th  of  July  following,  they  ar- 
rived at  the  point  on  Snake  river  since  known  as  Fort 
Hall.  Here  Wyeth  and  his  party  of  traders  remained ; 
the  others  continued  their  journey  to  Vancouver  by  the 
way  of  Walla  Walla,  arriving  at  the  former  place  on  the 
15th  of  September  of  that  year.  The  missionaries,  after 
receiving  their  supplies,  (which  had  been  forwarded  from 
Boston  on  the  brig  Mary  Dacre)  and  being  joined  by  those 
in  the  same  cause  who  came  on  the  brig,  established 
their  headquarters  at  Willamette  Yalley,  about  seventy- 
five  miles  above  the  mouth  of  the  Multnomah.  Colonel 
Edwards  remained  with  them.  This  fact  likely  gave  rise 
to  the  impression  which  has  since  appeared  in  public 
print,  that  he  was  a  member  of  the  mission.  He  was  at 
that  time  a  member  of  the  Methodist  Church,  and  may 
have  joined  his  efforts  with  those  around  him  in  dissem- 
inating the  truths  of  the  Bible  among  the  red  men  of  the 
Pacific  coast,  but  he  was  not  ofiicially  connected  with  the 
mission.  In  September,  1835,  Daniel  Lee,  nephew  of 
eJason  Lee,  and  Colonel  Edwards,  left  the  mission  for 
Vancouver;  the  former  seeking  to  restore  his  health,  and 
the  latter  contemplating  a  return  to  the  United  States  on 
the  brig  Mary  Dacre. 

The  change  from  the  mission  to  Vancouver  seemed 
not  to  have  the  desired  effect  upon  Mr.  Lee's  health,  for 


PHILIP   L.    EDWARDS.  465 

instead  of  improving,  he  grew  worse;  hence  his  friends 
deemed  it  advisable  and  did  send  him  to  the  Sandwich 
Islands.  Colonel  Edwards  in  the  meantime  changed  his 
intention  of  returning  by  sea,  and  went  back  to  the 
mission.  In  October  of  that  year,  he  established  a  school 
at  Campment  du  Sable,  or  Champoeg,  which  he  con- 
tinued till  the  next  spring.  Other  missionaries  had 
arrived  from  the  States,  which,  by  the  spring  of  1836, 
increased  their  numbers  to  quite  a  settlement,  sufficiently 
so  as  to  make  it  necessary  to  look  after  the  means  of 
support  and  to  provide  against  contingencies.  Colonel 
Edwards  again  visited  Vancouver,  and  soon  after  joined 
with  others  in  the  enterprise  to  obtain  cattle  and  horses 
from  California  to  supply  the  pressing  wants  of  the  fast 
increasing  population  of  the  Willamette  Valley — Douglass, 
Governor  of  British  Columbia,  being  one  of  the  inter- 
ested parties  in  the  venture.  Captain  W.  A.  Slocum,  of 
the  United  States  Xavy,  very  kindly  offered  the  interested 
parties  free  passage  to  San  Francisco.  Colonel  Edwards 
and  Ewing  Young  were  appointed  to  take  charge  of  the 
expedition.  They  arrived  in  San  Francisco  the  1st  of 
July,  1836. 

What  a  change!  A  few  huts  here  and  there,  standing 
on  the  margin  of  the  bay,  not  of  sufficient  importance  to 
deserve  the  name  of  village  when  first  he  saw  the  place, 
had  grown  to  a  populous  and  wealthy  city  when  last  he 
visited  it  in  1869. 

The  party  delayed  no  time  in  purchasing  and  gather- 
ing together  a  band  of  cattle  and  horses,  and  started 
across  the  country  for  the  settlement  of  the  missionaries. 
The  Indians  frequently  annoyed  them,  and  on  several 
occasions  seemed  determined  not  only  to  take  their  prop- 
erty but  also  their  lives.  They  succeeded  in  stealing  part 
of  their  band;  yet,  through  the  perseverance  and  un- 
daunted courage  of  the  managers  of  the  expedition,  near 
1,200  head  were  taken  through,  which  were  distributed 
among  the  settlers,  and  laid  the  foundation  for  a  rapid 
accumulation  of  the  comforts  of  life  and  future  wealth. 

In  March,  1837,  the  Colonel,  in  company  with  the 
Rev.  Jason  Lee  and  two  Indian  boys,  whom  they  had. 
30 


466  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

educated  in  the  English  language,  took  their  leave  of  the 
mission  and  started  across  the  plains  for  Missouri.  After 
undergoing  the  hardships  incidental  to  such  a  trip,  they 
finally  arrived  safely  at  the  Colonel's  home  in  the  sum- 
mer of  that  year. 

.   Of  course,  after  an  absence  of  four  years,  the  rejoin- 
ing with  relatives  and  friends  necessarily  demanded  many 
conversations  relative  to  his  travels  and  experience  during 
that  period,  which  left  but  little  opportunity  for  him  to 
, consider  his  future  course.     However,  his  active  mind 
was  ill  at  ease  while  idle,  and  no  considerable  time  was 
lost  in  arriving  at  some  conclusion.    He  settled  upon  the 
study  of  law,  and  placed  himself  under  the  instruction 
of  Amos  Reese,  of  Richmond,  in  that  State.     Like  every 
thing  else  with  which  he  dealt,  he  commenced  the  read- 
ing of  law  with  a  determination  to  fathom  its  mysteries 
and  understand  its  complications.     After  close  applica- 
tion for  more  than  two  years,  he  was  admitted  to  the  bar 
in  1840.     He  began  the  practice  of  law  at  Richmond, 
before  a  strong  bar,  meeting  antagonists  learned  in  the 
law  and  experienced  in  the  practice.     Carrying  with  him 
native  urbanity,  cultivated  fine  taste,  penetrative  intellect, 
an  unflinching  will  for  the  right,  and  no  countenance  for 
'  the  wrong,  he  soon  acquired  a  high  standing  among  his 
fellow-members  of  the  bar.     Unlike  many  lawyers  who 
i  regard  their  calling  no  higher  than  ingeniously  combined 
1  manoeuvres  to  defraud  innocent  parties,  and  all  the  while 
'  hunting  up  the  tricks  to  victimize  some   one,  he  looked 
( upon  his  profession  as  one  of  the  most  responsible  known 
j among  men:   the  leading  objects  of  which  are,  as  he  re- 
garded it,  to  allay  broils  between  neighbors,  adjust  un- 
avoidable disputes  between  parties  upon  the  broad  and 
honorable   premises  of  equity,  and   to    deal  out   even- 
handed  justice  between  man  and  man. 

As  a  practitioner,  he  was  at  all  times  fair  with  his 
adversary,  scorning  to  take  any  advantage  of  technical- 
ities, preferring  to  meet  the  issue  boldly  and  rely  upon 
the  merits  of  the  case.  As  an  advocate,  he  was  zealous, 
energetic,  and  persevering  for  the  interest  of  his  client. 
His  cases  were  always  well  prepared ;  his  argument  to  the 


PHILIP   L.    EDWARDS.  467 

Court,  whether  oral  or  written,  invariably  presented  his 
theory  of  the  case  in  that  concise  language  too  plain  for 
any  to  mistake  his  meaning.  His  appeals  to  the  jury 
were  animated  and  full  of  pathos ;  strongly  persuasive  to 
the  side  of  his  client.  As  a  counselor,  none  were  more 
careful,  always  preferring  a  thorough  investigation  of  the 
law  in  contemplated  application  of  the  facts  in  the  mat- 
ter, before  giving  his  opinion.  Of  course,  like  all  lawyers, 
he  had  at  times  very  doubtful  cases,  but  under  no  cir- 
cumstances would  he  advise  a  client  to  commence  litiga- 
tion, if  he  considered  the  facts  of  doubtful  application 
and  insufficient  to  sustain  the  case:  he  would  frankly 
tell  him  so,  and  counsel  him  against  the  danger  of  com- 
mencing in  the  law  on  precarious  grounds ;  for,  said  he, 
even  a  good  cause  of  action  is  attended  with  annoyance, 
trouble,  and  cost,  and  a  bad  one  with  still  more  annoy- 
ance, beside  indefinite  outlays  of  money. 

In  August,  1840,  soon  after  being  admitted  to  the  bar, 
he  married  Miss  Mary  Y.  Allen,  and  entered  upon  the 
duties  and  responsibilities  of  a  husband,  which  he  never 
relinquished  or  neglected.  His  conduct  in  business  mat- 
ters and  his  social  demeanor  never  failed  to  attract  the 
admiration  of  those  with  whom  he  came  in  contact,  and 
his  domestic  relations  may  well  be  pointed  to  as  a  perfect 
model  of  that  union  of  love  and  affection  equaled  by  few, 
surpassed  by  none.  The  pledges  of  good  faith  and  con- 
fidence made  to  each  other  while  yet  they  were  young, 
lost  none  of  their  binding  force  as  age  increased,  but 
rather  grew  stronger  and  deeper-seated  in  love  and  affec- 
tion for  each  other. 

In  1843,  he  was  elected  to  represent  Ray  count}^  in 
the  lower  branch  of  the  Legislature  by  the  Whig  pafty, 
to  which  he  adhered  from  his  majority.  His  force  of 
character,  together  with  his  admitted  ability,  attracted 
attention,  and  he  was  selected  as  the  Chairman  of  the 
Judiciary  Committee,  which  is  the  most  important  posi- 
tion in  any  Legislature.  He  filled  the  place  with  dignity 
and  marked  ability.  At  that  time,  politics  was  not  the 
dirty  pool  it  has  since  become.  The  two  great  parties  of 
the  country  were  honorable  in  their  actions  among  them- 


468  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

selves,  as  well  as  towards  .each  other.  Both  parties  had 
leaders  upon  whom  the  members  ( doted,  and  were  eager 
to  do  them  honor.  Henry  Clay,  the  great  leader  of  the 
Whig  party,  had  his  admirers  and  friends,  among  whom 
none  were  stronger  in  their  attachment  than  Colonel  Ed- 
wards. The  writer  has  often  heard  him  speak  of  Clay, 
and  he  would  admit  that  Mr.  Clay,  as  a  matter  of  course, 
had  some  faults;  "^but,"  he  would  say,  ''Clay  had  the 
great,  good  man  in  him."  Without  "the  good,"  he  always 
insisted,  "  no  man  was  great." 

The  Whig  Convention  of  1844  selected  him  as  dele- 
gate to  the  National  Convention  to  be  holden  in  Balti- 
more, which  nominated  Clay  for  the  Presidency.  He  was 
Chairman  of  the  Missouri  delegation,  and  availed  himself 
of  the  opportunity  to  express  his  admiration  of  the  only 
candidate  before  that  convention,  as  well  as  to  predict 
the  result  of  the  ensuing  campaign,  which  seemed  appar- 
ent to  all  the  friends  of  their  chieftain,  unquestionably 
in  favor  of  Harry  of  the  West.  In  this,  however,  he, 
like  his  comrades,  fell  short  of  the  realization,  for  not- 
withstanding the  flattering  prospects  of  success  when  the 
canvass  opened,  their  heau  ideal  of  a  man  and  statesman 
failed  to  be  sustained  by  the  people. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  just  at  that  time  Morse 
had  about  completed  the  first  telegraph  line  ever  made, 
which  was  between  Baltimore  and  Washington  City,  and 
the  nomination  of  Clay  and  Frelinghuysen  was  among  the 
first  dispatches  sent  over  the  line  to  Washington.  Tele- 
graphing at  that  time  was  regarded  as  among  the  wonders 
of  the  age,  and  the  nomination  of  Mr.  Clay  was  looked 
upon  by  his  friends  as  an  epoch  in  American  history  which 
ought  to  be  commemorated;  therefore  his  more  ardent 
idmirers  seized  upon  duplicated  telegrams  of  his  nomina- 
tion as  appropriate  mementoes  of  the  Convention  that 
'.ad  done  the  noble  work.  The  Colonel,  visiting  AYash- 
ngton  after  the  adjournment  of  the  Convention,  procured 
a  duplicate  of  the  telegram  referred  to,  as  well  as  other 
samples  which  were  in  telegraphic  characters  as  then 
used  in  the  art,  and  had  them  for  many  years  afterwards, 
if  not  up  to  the  time  of  his  death.     After  seeing  the 


PHILIP   L.    EDWARDS.  469 

places  of  interest  in  the  capital  city — listening  to  the 
discussion  had  in  the  United  States  Senate  upon  the 
tariff  and  other  prominent  subjects  then  agitating  the 
country — he  returned  to  Missouri,  and  entered  the  can- 
vass between  Clay  and  Polk,  which  soon  became  intensely 
exciting.  As  did  his  brother  Whigs  generally,  he  fought 
gallantly  for  the  chivalric  leader  of  the  ''American  sys- 
tem;" but  the  tide  of  opinion  was  against  them,  and  all 
their  hopes  of  placing  the  country  under  his  administra- 
tion fell  prostrate  under  a  defeat  of  their  idolized  states- 
man. Though  beaten  and  defeated,  he  never  yielded  his 
good  opinion  and  attachment  for  Mr.  Clay,  but  insisted 
that  he  ought  to  have  been  President.  The  canvass  over, 
he  took  a  trip  to  Texas,  with  an  intention,  should  some 
locality  suit  him,  to  move  his  family  and  permanently 
settle  there.  Seeing  San  Antonio,  Galveston,  and  other 
prominent  places  of  business,  he  returned  pleased  w^ith 
the  country ;  but  the  inducements  were  not  sufficient  to 
justify  a  change  of  residence,  therefore  he  entered  again 
upon  the  practice  of  his  profession  in  Richmond,  where 
he  continued  till  1850. 

The  gold  mines  of  California  by  this  time  had  become 
known,  and  were  famous  for  their  rich  and  unprecedented 
yield.  Thousands  were  flocking  to  her  shores  to  take  a 
chance  at  fortune's  wlieel  in  this  fabulously  rich  land  of 
gold.  The  stories  of  sudden  wealth  acquired  by  many 
who  came  to  California,  may  have  had  some  influence 
upon  the  subject  of  this  sketch;  yet  they  certainly  were 
not  the  leading  cause  of  his  immigrating  hither,  for  he 
came  prepared  and  evidently  intended  to  make  California 
his  home.  He  brought  his  family  along  with  him,  arriv- 
ing in  Sacramento  in  September,  1850,  where  his  home 
continued  through  all  the  ups  and  downs  of  the  city,  until 
he  was  called  to  render  that  final  account  which  must 
sooner  or  later  occur  with  all  that  live.  The  wild  excite- 
ment of  the  mines,  the  big  strikes  and  rich  diggings,  did 
not  lead  him  to  engage  in  what  he  regarded  the  pursuit 
of  fickle  fortune  within  their  precarious  precincts.  His 
attention  was  directed  to  his   profession,  and  he  soon 


470  REPRESENTATrV^E    MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

established  a  reputation  as  a  first-class  lawyer  in  his  new 
home. 

In  1852^  the  Whigs  made  their  last  big  fight  for  the 
Presidency,  General  Winfield  Scott  being  the  candidate. 
Colonel  Edwards  was  selected  by  that  party  as  a  candidate 
to  Congress.  He  made  the  canvass  of  the  State,  and  from 
his  energetic  manner,  and  bold  and  argumentative 
speeches  made  from  the  stump,  he  was  denominated  the 
^'  war  horse"  of  the  Whig  party.  As  before,  his  party 
failed.  The  failure  on  this  occasion,  however,  he  never 
seemed  to  regret  so  much  as  he  did  that  of  Mr.  Clay. 

In  1854,  Colonel  Edwards  was  elected  by  the  Whig 
party  as  a  Representative  of  Sacramento  county.  The 
Legislature  met  January,  1855.  Attention  was  soon 
directed  to  him  for  the  Speakership,  but  he  declined  the 
position,  and  accepted  the  appointment  by  Speaker  Stow 
as  Chairman  of  the  Judiciary  Committee,  a  position  for 
which  he  was  well  qualified,  and  which  he  filled  ably  and 
creditably  to  himself,  as  well  as  to  those  who  elected  him. 
This  session  was  the  one  in  which  the  memorable  struggle 
occurred  between  Broderick  and  Gwin  for  a  seat  in  the 
United  States  Senate.  In  joint  caucus  of  their  party, 
Gwin  received  the  nomination,  but  Broderick' s  friends 
bolted,  and  both  of  them  came  before  the  Joint  Conven- 
tion of  the  two  houses.  Col.  Edwards  was  nominated  by 
his  own  party  in  opposition  to  both  of  the  Democratic 
candidates.  He  needed  a  few  votes  of  an  election  at  the 
beginning  of  the  contest,  but  the  parties  were  well  drilled, 
and  those  few  were  not  obtained.  However,  the  required 
number  could  have  been  had,  for  the  proposition  was  made, 
on  the  condition  that  the  Colonel  would  pledge  the  ap- 
pointment of  several  parties  to  Federal  positions  in  Cali- 
fornia. His  friends  received  the  proposal,  and  consulted 
with  him  concerning  it.  He  indignantly  scorned  the  idea 
of  permitting  his  hands  to  be  tied  by  any  one,  or  barter- 
ing for  a  position  which  should  be  untrammeled,  and 
particularly  screened  from  the  machinations  of  that  class 
of  men  who,  like  cormorants,  liang  upon  the  skirts  of  all 
political  parties,  seeking  no  higher  distinction  than  to  be 


PHILIP   L.    EDWARDS.  471 

the  recipients  of  the  spoils.  What  a  contrast  between 
his  opinion  as  to  what  should  be  a  candidate's  position, 
and  what  really  is  their  course  now ! 

The  joint  convention  of  the  two  houses  convened  from 
day  to  day,  when  it  was  well  understood  no  choice  could 
be  made.  The  Colonel  would  not  vote  for  himself,  and 
not  being  disposed  to  vote  for  the  opposite  candidate, 
would  cast  his  vote  for  any  one  he  happened  to  think  of 
at  the  time  his  name  was  called.  At  one  time  some 
fellow-member  suggested  the  name  of  a  party,  and  the 
Colonel  cast  his  vote  for  him.  He  afterwards  learned 
that  he  had  voted  for  Mr.  Broderick's  servant,  and  some 
of  the  members  regarded  it  as  a  good  joke.  '^Well,"  he 
remarked,  ^'I  am  not  certain  but  he  would  do  about  as 
well  as  any  of  us." 

The  Whig  party  to  which  he  belonged  and  to  whose 
doctrines  he  had  unwaveringly  adhered,  just  at  this  time 
went  into  dissolution,  and  other  and  different  isms  sprang 
up.  He  never  afterwards  had  any  strong  attachment  for 
either  of  the  political  parties  that  were  claiming  the  suf- 
frage of  the  people.  The  Know-Nothing,  or  American, 
party  being  in  opposition  to  the  Democratic  party,  he 
favored  the  former  on  the  ground  of  continuing  his  op- 
position to  the  latter,  which  he  had  been  fighting  all  his 
life,  yet  he  condemned  all  secret  political  associations. 

As  a  partisan,  he  was  so  on  the  broad  ground  of  prin- 
ciple, and  not  capable  of  resorting  to  the  narrowly  con- 
tracted view  too  often  entertained  and  practiced  by  those 
who,  in  deciding  a  proposition,  first  inquire  how  much,  or 
the  number  of  dollars  they  can  make  out  of  it.  "After,"  he 
w^ould  remark,  "the  chivalric  and  noble  Whig  party  died," 
he  had  to  choose  between  his  life-long  foe  and  the  new  isms 
of  the  day.  This,  however,  he  did  not  do  until  after  the 
Presidential  fight  in  1856,  at  which  time  he  strongly 
advocated  the  claims  of  Millard  Fillmore.  Political  par- 
ties then  divided  principally  on  propositions  of  a  sectional 
character,  and  from  that  time  he  voted  and  acted  with 
the  Democratic  party.  Except  the  speech  he  delivered 
in  the  Democratic  Convention  in  1861,  his  political  ad- 
dresses were   impromptu,   and  always  to   the  point   at 


472  EEPRESENTATIYE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

issue — strongly  persuasive  to  the  cause  he  espoused.  On 
that  occasion,  lie  was  careful  lest  he  should  be  misrepre- 
sented by  the  reporters  of  the  press,  and  wrote  out  his 
speech  on  the  issues  involved  and  the  condition  of  affairs, 
before  delivering  it. 

In  his  public  as  well  as  his  private  life,  all  had  full 
opportunity  to  understand  his  position.  Scorning  deceit, 
condemning  vanity,  abhorring  egotism,  frank  and  sincere, 
with  a  religious  faith  not  hampered  by  the  sectarian  limits 
of  favorite  dogmas,  but  broad  and  extended  as  the 
pleasing  fields  of  charity,  love,  and  truth.  The  old,  the 
little  children,  the  young  man,  as  well  as  the  damsel  just 
blushing  into  womanhood,  were  fond  of  enjoying  his 
society.  He  never  spoke  ill  of  any  one,  nor  did  ever 
charity  appeal  to  him  in  vain.  His  desire  to  assist  others 
doubtless  injured  him  in  a  pecuniary  point  of  view,  but  it 
demonstrated  the  good  impulses  of  nature  which  marked 
his  course  through  life. 


HUGH  CAMPBELL  MURRAY. 

Py  the  ^ditoi^ 


All  Calif omians  will  find  interest  in  a  simple  sketch,  however 
prosaic,  of  the  life  of  one  who  came  to  the  shores  of  the  Pacific  in 
early  manhood,  friendless  and  penniless;  who,  after  a  very  brief 
residence,  impressed  his  fellow  men  with  a  high  sense  of  his  worth 
and  splendid  abilities;  who  became  a  leader  in  the  early  political 
movements  in  California;  who  was  a  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  at 
the  age  of  twenty-six  years;  who  became  Chief  Justice  of  that  tri- 
bunal at  the  age  of  twenty-eight;  and  who  died,  not  "full  of  years'* 
but  *'full  of  honors,"  in  the  service  of  the  State. 

HUGH  Campbell  Murray  was  born  at  St.  Louis,  Mis- 
souri, on  the  22d  day  of  April,  1825.  He  was  of 
Scotch  ancestry.  While  he  was  yet  in  his  infancy  his 
parents  removed  to  Alton,  Illinois.  At  Alton,  Hugh 
passed  his  boyhood  days,  where  he  received  his  education 
and  grew  up  to  manhood.  Upon  leaving  school  he  re- 
solved to  embrace  the  study  of  law,  and,  with  that  view, 
entered  the  office  of  Hon.  N.  D.  Strong.  He  had  not 
commenced  the  practice  of  law,  when  the  Mexican  War 
broke  out.  Mr.  Murray  joined  the  army  and  received  the 
appointment  of  Lieutenant  in  the  Fourteenth  Regiment  of 
Infantry.  He  served  during  the  war  in  Gen.  Scott's  line, 
and,  upon  the  conclusion  of  peace,  returned  to  Illinois. 
The  Editor  has  been  unable  to  obtain  any  incidents  in  his 
military  career,  and  cannot  say  with  what  distinction,  if 
any,  he  served  in  Mexico ;  but  his  disposition  was  ardent 
and  adventurous,  and  he  doubtless  entered  with  spirit  and 
enthusiasm  into  that  short  conflict. 


474  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

Before  he  had  commenced  the  prosecution  of  his  pro- 
fession,  his  attention  was  again  diverted.  Upon  the  dis- 
covery of  gold  in  California,  he  was  among  the  first  to 
leave  Illinois  for  the  far  West.  He  came  to  California  by 
way  of  Panama.  The  voyage  severely  tried  his  patience 
and  endurance :  not  being  able  to  secure  a  through  ticket, 
he  was  detained  some  time  on  the  Isthmus;  at  length  he 
embarked  at  Panama  on  the  ship  Two  Friends^  for  San 
Francisco.  This  vessel  was  very  old  and  very  slow.  Mr. 
Murray  spent  six  months  in  coming  from  Panama  to  San 
Francisco,  and  would  have  been  even  longer  on  the  way 
had  he  not  left  the  vessel  at  Cape  St.  Lucas.  In  com- 
j^any  with  some  of  his  companions  he  walked  the  entire 
distance  from  the  point  last  named  to  the  place  of  his  des- 
tination— several  hundred  miles.  Upon  this  journey  the 
little  party  of  indomitable  pioneers  suffered  incredible 
hardships  and  privations.  At  last,  in  September,  1849, 
they  arrived  at  San  Francisco.  Mr  Murray  at  once  com- 
menced the  practice  of  law.  He  soon  formed  a  large  cir- 
cle of  friends,  and  was  distinguished  for  his  social  and 
convivial  qualities.  He  was  not  long  in  obtaining  a 
lucrative  practice.  When  the  Superior  Court  of  the  city 
of  San  Francisco  was  organized  by  the  first  Legislature  of 
the  State  in  1850,  Hugh  C.  Murray  and  J.  Caleb  Smith 
were  elected  Associate  Justices,  Judge  Morse  having  been 
appointed  to  preside.  Judge  Murray  discharged  the 
functions  of  his  office  in  a  manner  that  convinced  the  bar 
and  the  people  of  his  capacity  and  fidelity. 

In  1854,  upon  the  resignation  of  Judge  Bennett.  Mr. 
Murray  was  appointed  by  Governor  McDougal  as  one  of 
the  Associate  Justices  of  the  Supreme  Court.  Judge 
Murray  was  then  only  twenty-six  years  of  age.  It  is  safe 
to  predict  that  many  years  will  elapse  before  the  Supreme 
bench  of  this  or  any  other  State  will  be  occupied  b}^  a 
man  as  young  as  was  Judge  Murray  at  that  time.  Upon 
the  expiration  of  his  term  of  office,  in  1853,  our  subject 
was  nominated  by  the  Democracy  for  Supreme  Judge,  and 
was  elected  by  the  people.  Shortly  after  his  electron,  he 
became,  upon  the  resignation  of  Judge  Lyons,  Chief  Jus- 
tice of  the  Court. 


HUGH    CAAH^BELL    MURRAY.  4:15 

The  term  for  which  he  was  elected  having  expired  in 
1855,  Judge  Murray  became  a  candidate  for  reelection. 
The  ^N'ative  American,  or  Know-Nothing,  party  had  just 
perfected  its  organization  in  California.  Judge  Murray, 
with  many  of  the  brightest  intellects  of  the  State,  em- 
braced the  principles  of  the  new  party.  The  first  State 
Convention  of  that  party  met  at  Sacramento,  in  the  sum- 
mer of  1855.  It  was  a  very  enthusiastic  body  and  large- 
ly attended.  Judge  Murray  received  the  nomination  for 
Supreme  Judge  for  the  long  term — six  years.  After  a 
desperate  contest,  in  which  every  appliance  was  brought 
to  defeat  him,  he  was  again  elected  by  a  small  majority. 
He  continued  to  be  the  presiding  justice  of  the  Court  up 
to  the  time  of  his  death.  In  the  summer  of  1853  he  made 
a  visit  to  Illinois,  and  spent  a  few  months  with  his  mother. 
With  that  exception,  ever  since  his  appointment  in  1851 
until  he  succumbed  to  disease  in  1857,  he  devoted  all  the 
energies  of  his  great  mind  to  the*  proper  discharge  of  his 
official  duties. 

Judge  Murray  died  of  consumption,  at  his  residence 
in  Sacramento,  on  September  18th,  1857.  For  a  long 
while  before  his  death  he  had  suffered  much,  and  often 
occupied  his  seat  on  the  bench  when  his  health  did  not 
justify  it.  He  was  confined  to  his  room  for  about  ten 
da}' s  in  his  last  sickness.  By  the  force  of  will  he  bore  up 
against  the  working  of  his  disease  until  the  evening  pre- 
vious to  his  death,  when  the  consciousness  of  his  situa- 
tion was  first  fully  manifested  to  him,  and  he  calmly  re- 
signed all  hope  of  life.  From  that  hour  he  sank  rapidly, 
and  at  a  quarter  past  twelve  o'clock  the  next  day,  expired. 
A  post  mortem  examination  showed  the  cause  of  death  to 
be  the  perforation  of  the  left  lung  by  the  ravages  of  dis- 
ease. A  violent  fit  of  coughing,  with  which  he  was  first 
attacked,  caused  a  rupture  of  the  tegument  and  the  open- 
ing referred  to.  The  following  extract  is  taken  from  the 
obituary  notice  of  Judge  Murray  which  appeared  in  the 
Sacramento  Union  the  day  after  his  death. 

''As  a  man.  Judge  Murray  has  always  been  noted  for 
his  extremely  positive  character,  ^o  one  in  the  State 
possessed   more  warm  and   devotedly  attached   friends, 


476  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

and  probably  no  one  more  bitter  enemies.  He  sought  no 
disguise  of  his  preferences  or  dislikes,  nor  did  he  strive 
to  conceal  the  faults  of  his  nature.  He  was  consequently 
subjected  to  severe  criticism — as  much  so  as  perhaps  any 
man  who  has  occupied  so  exalted  a  position.  The  vio- 
lence of  assault  had,  on  the  other  hand,  the  effect  of 
drawing  his  friends  to  him  more  closely,  and  we  doubt 
not  the  tears  shed  at  his  grave  will  flow  directly  from 
the  very  depths  of  the  heart. 

"As  a  jurist,  Judge  Murray  occupied  an  unequivocal 
position.  Xo  one — not  even  his  most  bitter  enemy — has 
ever  questioned  his  capacity.  He  had  a  peculiarly  legal 
mind,  sufficient  to  grasp  all  the  points  of  a  case  with  won- 
derful scope.  His  legal  knowledge  seemed  to  have  been 
almost  intuitive.  From  chaos  he  drew  forth  order,  and 
resolved  the  most  intricate  propositions  into  clear  and 
concise  form.  His  decisions  were  always  terse  and  pun- 
gent, free  from  circumlocution  and  directly  to  the  point. 
The  last  judicial  act  of  his  life — the  decision  in  the  case 
of  Welch  vs.  Sullivan— ^wsiS  his  most  elaborate  one,  and 
serves  better  than  any  commentary  to  display  the  strong, 
positive  character  of  the  Judge  and  the  man." 

At  the  time  of  his  death,  the  only  surviving  relatives 
of  Judge  Murray,  were  his  mother  and  brother,  who 
resided  at  Alton,  Illinois.  His  mother  is  represented 
to  have  been  a  lady  of  strong  intellect  and  estimable 
character. 

More  than  twelve  years  have  elapsed  since  Judge 
Murray's  body  was  committed  to  the  earth.  A  noble  fra- 
ternity of  professional  men,  constantly  augmenting  in 
numbers,  continues  to  study  with  unflagging  interest  his 
learned  expositions  of  law.  His  fame  is  established  as  an 
honest  man,  a  great  lawyer,  and  an  upright  judge.  Those 
who  bear  his  name  may  smile  at  the  harmless  shafts  with 
which  his  enemies,  in  their  bitterness,  dared  to  assail  even 
his  honor.  The  record  of  his  life  will  bear  the  closest 
scrutiny,  and  will  lead  the  candid  foe  to  confess,  that  he 
was  UNCORRUPTED  and  incorruptible. 


HUGH    CAMPBELL    SILTiRAY.  477 


Proceedings  of  the  Supreme  Court,  had  upon  the  Death 
OF  Chief  Justice  Ml^rray.  Sacramento,  California, 
October  5th,  1857.  Present — Dayid  S.  Terry,  C.  J., 
^nd  Peter  H.  Burnett,  J. 

On  the  opening  of  the  Court,  W.  T.  Wallace,  Esq., 
Attorney  General  of  the  State,  arose  and  said  : 

May  it  please  your  Honors  : — 

.  Since  your  last  adjournment,  it  has  pleased  an  all-wise  Provi- 
dence to  remove  from  our  midst  the  Hon.  Hugh  C.  Murray,  the  late 
Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  California.  Arriving  upon 
our  shores  a  youth,  unknown  and  unheralded,  unaided  by  any  of  the 
fortuitous  circumstances  which  sometimes  lend  success  to  men,  he 
commenced  his  high  career  ;  but  he  was  not  even  then  unnoticed. 
One  who  heard  his  first  effort  here  as  a  lawyer,  has  often  in  other 
years  related  to  me  the  deep  interest  which  his  eloquence  threw 
around  the  first  cause  which  he  argued  upon  these  shores.  After 
his  arrival  in  this  State,  Judge  Murray  did  not  long  remain  at  the 
bar.  It  was  early  discovered  that  he  was  fitted  for  a  loftier  posi- 
tion. He  was  first  elected  one  of  the  Judges  of  the  Superior  Court 
of  the  city  of  San  Francisco.  In  that  position  his  great  abilities  as 
a  jurist  were  so  signally  displayed,  that  in  accordance  with  the  gen- 
eral wish  of  the  bar,  at  the  earliest  opportunity  which  offered,  he 
was  transferred  to  the  bench  of  the  Supreme  Court,  in  which  posi- 
tion, having  been  twice  elected  by  the  people  of  the  State,  he  con- 
tinued until  death  put  a  period  to  his  usefulness.  He  was  gifted 
by  pature  with  an  intellect  capable  of  graspin^^  the  mightiest  sub- 
jects ;  he  had  a  mind  which  passed  with  ease  through  the  meshes  in 
which  ingenuity  or  sophistry  had  interwoven  a  cause  to  the  con- 
trolling point ;  and  he  Was  possessed  of  an  analysis  under  the  magic 
operation  of  which  the  most  intricate  legal  problems  were  solved 
as  if  by  intuition.  At  the  early  age  of  thirty-two  years,  it  is  not  to 
be  denied  that  his  position  was  in  the  jfront  rank  of  the  j mists  of 
our  country.  In  view  of  so  much  accomplished  while  he  was  yet 
in  the  morning  of  life,  who  could  tell  what  he  might  have  effected  for 
his  country,  and  himself,  when  years  and  experience  had  fully  ma- 
tured his  great  powers?  But  he  is  gone  !  G-lassy  and  dim  now  is 
the  eye  that  we  have  seen  here  so  often  lit  up  with  the  hash  of  ge- 
nius and  intelligence.  That  generous  and  kind  heart  is  stilled  for- 
ever. That  noble  form,  which  we  have  so  long  seen  presiding  over 
the  judicial  destinies  of  a  great  State,  has  passed  away,  and  of  the 
loved  and  honored  and  gifted  departed,  nothing  is  left  but  the  bright 
page  in  the  judicial  history  of  the  State  which  his  genius  adorned, 
and  the  memory  of  the  man,  most  fomily  cherished  by  those  who 
knew  him  best.     He  had  no  negatives  in  his  nature.     He  never 


478  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

shunned  responsibility,  and  never  turned  aside  in  his  pathway  to 
avoid  consequences  ;  and,  like  all  men  of  such  strongly  marked 
and  positive  character,  he  had  bitter  enemies  and  devoted  friends. 
But  friends  and  generous  foes  alike,  gathering  around  his  early 
tomb,  pronounce  his  untimely  death  the  greatest  calamity  that  has 
yet  befallen  the  fortunes  of  our  young  commonwealth. 

I  move,  your  Honors,  that  the  resolutions  of  the  Sacramento  Bar, 
which  I  have  the  honor  now  to  read  and  present,  may  be  entered 
upon  the  minutes  of  the  Court ;  and  that  this  Court  do  now  adjourn, 
as  a  mark  of  respect  to  the  memory  of  the  lamented  deceased. 

In  response  to  the  motion  of  the  Attorney  General, 
Chief  Justice  Terry  said  : — 

The  death  of  the  Hon.  Hugh  C.  Murray,  who  for  five  years  past 
has  occupied,  with  distinguished  ability,  the  position  of  Chief  Jus- 
tice of  this  Court,  has  filled  us  with  unfeigned  regret. 

Called  early  in  life  to  an  important  position  in  the  Judiciary  of 
a  new  State,  he  was  eminently  fitted  for  the  discharge  of  the  oner- 
ous and  responsible  duties  of  the  post.  His  quick  perception, 
sound  judgment,  and  vigorous  intellect,  enabled  him  to  master 
with  ease  the  most  difficult  questions  ;  and  the  possession  of  great 
moral  courage  prevented  his  being  swayed  or  influenced,  in  the 
conscientious  disfcharge  of  his  official  duties,  by  any  considerations 
of  policy  or  regard  for  personal  popularity.  He  has  left  his  mark 
in  the  history  of  our  young  State,  whose  judicial  reports,  bearing  the 
impress  of  his  genius,  will  remain  a  lasting  monument  to  his  mem- 
ory. As  a  judge,  he  was  just,  impartial,  and  fearless.  As  a  man, 
he  was  remarkable  for  the  possession  of  social  qualities  which  won, 
in  a  peculiar  degree,  upon  the  confidence  and  a£fection  of  his  asso- 
ciates. He  was  frank,  candid,  and  ingenuous,  almost  to  a  fault ; 
generous  to  prodigality,  and  firm  and  faithful  in  his  friendship. 
We  deplore  his  early  death,  as  an  irreparable  loss  to  the  State  ;  and, 
cordially  approving  the  resolutions  you  have  just  read,  order  that 
the  proceedings  of  to-day  be  entered  on  the  minutes  of  the  Court, 
and  as  a  mark  of  respect  for  the  memory  of  our  late  distinguished 
brother,  order  that  the  Court  stand  adjourned  until  Monday  next. 


'-O^    Of  TSS 


'c4^'?zA 


7^^, 


HENRY  M.  GRAY. 

J3y    y/lLLIAM    y.     y/EI-L-S. 


THE  name  of  Dr.  Gray,  surrounded  by  endearing  recol- 
lections, has  for  twenty  years  ,  been  cherished  as  a 
household  word  in  San  Franc i'sco,  where,  in  the  relation- 
ship of  friend  and  benefactor,  his  good  deeds  are  enshrined 
in  unnumbered  hearts.  He  wa^,' born  in  New  York,  in 
1821.  His  father,  the  Rev:  William-  Gray,  aScotch  Pres- 
byterian clergyman,.remoyed  tO' Seneca'  Falls,  N.  Y.,  soon 
after  the  birth  of  this  son,  who  passed  his  boyhood  there. 
He  was  graduated  in  1842  at  Geneva  Medical  College, 
having  previously  studied  at  Almyra  with  Dr.  Boynton, 
his  private  preceptor.  He  went  thence  to  New  York, 
commenced  the  practice  of  his  profession,  and  was  soon 
known  for  the  brightness  and  thoroughness  of  his  intel- 
lectual acquirements,  rendered  the  more  effective  by  a 
pleasing  frankness  of  manner  which  drew  about  him  the 
best  influences.  As  Visiting  Physician  at  the  New  York 
Dispensary,  in  Centre  Street,  he  gave  a  certain  number 
of  hours  daily  to  gratuitous  practice  among  the  poor,  and 
by  some  of  them  his  assiduous  attentions  are  still  grate- 
fully acknowledged. 

With  an  assured  and  enviable  social  position,  and  the 
certainty  of  speedy  eminence  as  a  physician,  his  love  of 
adventure  could  not  resist  the  excitement  of  the  Califor- 
nia gold  discovery;  and  closing  his  office  in  New  York, 
he  organized  a  party  of  ten  congenial  spirits — college 
mates,  friends  and  associates — who  purchased  the  bark 
Ho^e,  and  sailed  in  July,  1849,  for  California,  he  acting  as 


480  REPRESENTATIVE   I^IEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

surgeon  of  the  expedition,  Touching  at  Rio  de  Janiero, 
they  reached  their  destination  in  the  following  December. 
Some  of  the  party,  including  Dr.  Gray,  visited  the  mining 
regions,  but  returned  to  San  Francisco  after  a  few  months, 
where  he  immediately  commenced  the  practice  of  medi- 
cine, to  which  he  thenceforth  devoted  himself. 

Almost  as  soon  as  political  organization  began  to  as- 
sume shape  on  the  Pacific  coast.  Dr.  Gray  identified  him- 
self with  the  Whig  party  in  San  Francisco,  but  never  to 
an  extent  that  could  interfere  with  his  professional  pur- 
suits. He  had  brought  with  him  from  his  native  State 
the  traditions  associated  with  the  great  names  of  the 
Whig  party,  and  to  that  faith  he  adhered  as  long  as  the 
party  maintained  an  existence.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
Whig  State  Central,  and  of  the  Whig  General  Committee, 
having  been  Secretary  of  the  former  and  Chairman  of  the 
latter.  His  popularity  bringing  him  prominently  before 
the  Nominating  Committee  as  a  candidate  for  Mayor  in 
1852,  he  lacked  four  votes  of  the  nomination,  which  was 
awarded  to  Mr.  Brenham,  who,  in  the  ensuing  campaign 
was  elected  over  his  Democratic  competitor.  About  the 
same  time,  Dr.  Gray  was  chosen  to  deliver  the  oration  at 
the  American  theatre,  before  the  assembled  Masonic 
lodges  of  San  Francisco,  on  the  occasion  of  the  centennial 
of  Washington's  initiation  into  the  Order.  Of  this  no 
other  record  remains  than  a  few  meagre  paragraphs  in  the 
newspapers,  by  which  it  appears  that  the  address  was  a 
shining  testimonial  of  the  eloquence  and  culture  of  the 
orator,  who,  with  that  disregard  for  the  applause  of  the 
public,  which,  unfortunately,  too  often  distinguishes  gen- 
ius, modestly  withheld  the  manuscript  from  publication. 
It  impressed  itself  upon  the  audience  by  its  accomplished 
scholarship  and  the  unstudied  gracefulness  of  the  deliv- 
ery. His  addresses  before  the  Grand  and  other  Masonic 
Lodges  were  of  the  same  finished  type,  but  were  not  re- 
garded by  their  author  as  of  sufiicient  merit  to  deserve 
perpetuation  in  print.  On  the  anniversary  of  St.  John  the 
Baptist,  June  25th,  1860,  he  delivered  the  oration  at  the 
laying  of  the  corner-stone  of  the  Masonic  Temple  in  San 
Francisco.     His  notes  he  was  induced  to  write  out  for 


HENRY    M.    GRAY.  481 

publication  only  at  the  earnest  request  of  his  brother 
Masons,  who  claimed  the  production  as  the  property  of 
the  Order.  This  is  the  sole  address  by  Dr.  Gray  that  has 
been  preserved,  and  is  hereto  appended  as  a  fair  specimen 
of  his  polished  and  fervid  eloquence. 

His  practice,  which  at  first  had  been  limited,  grew  to 
be  the  most  considerable  of  any  in  San  Francisco,  and  so 
lucrative  that  in  a  few  years  he  had  made  a  large  fortune 
despite  his  proverbial  remissness  in  making  collections, 
his  own  expensive  habits,  and  his  liberal  contributions  to 
the  many  charities  that  appealed  to  him  for  aid.  Wher- 
ever the  voice  of  pain  and  anguish  was  heard,  there  the 
good  Doctor  was  foremost  with  his  cheerful  presence,  ten- 
der sympathies,  and  kindly  ministrations.  As  in  earlier 
days  in  New  York  he  had  ever  been  ready  to  assuage  the 
sufferings  of  the  poor  and  wretched,  so  in  the  home  of  his 
adoption  he  distinguished  himself  by  the  extent  of  his 
gratuitous  practice.  With  him  it  was  no  theoretical  ab- 
straction, but  he  daily  carried  into  practical  illustration 
the  Scriptural  and  Masonic  teachings  which  raise  charity 
to  the  first  of  the  cardinal  virtues.  Until  his  last  day  he 
was  a  Surgeon  of  the  Fire  Department,  and  at  any  time 
some  of  its  members  were  to  be  seen  in  his  ante-room 
awaiting  attendance,  for  which  he  desired  no  other  reward 
than  the  consciousness  of  doing  good  to  his  fellow  man. 
He  was  long  a  member  of  the  "San  Francisco  Association 
for  Medical  Enquiry" — a  body  of  physicians,  who,  in  a 
quiet  way,  did  more  to  alleviate  distress  in  California 
than  can  ever  be  acknowledged  or  known  beyond  their 
own  beneficent  circle.  Hundreds  of  poor  creatures  of 
either  sex  who  came  to  him  for  treatment,  he  prescribed 
for  without  fee  or  reward,  but  sending  them  away  with  the 
means  of  buying  not  only  the  necessaries,  but  the  luxuries 
so  grateful  to  the  sick,  and  beyond  the  reach  of  many  a 
longing  patient.  In  kind  offices  he  was  omnipresent.  On 
board  ocean  steamships  he  found  his  way  into  the  crowded 
steerage  to  attend  the  helpless  and  afflicted,  and  on  his 
visit  to  the  Yosemite,  in  1861,  he  went  far  out  of  his  route 
to  prescribe  for  a  wounded  hunter  lying  in  his  cabin  among 
the  lonely  fastnesses  of  the  Sierras.  Carrying  his  good 
31 


482  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

deeds  beyond  the  term  of  his  existence,  shortly  before  his 
death,  he  charged  a  professional  friend  with  the  care  of 
the  health  of  poor  and  worthy  persons  who  had  long  re- 
ceived gratuitous  practice  at  his  hands.  He  made  a  point 
of  inquiring  into  the  circumstances  of  needy-looking 
people — especially  women  and  children — seeking  medical 
advice ;  and  how  many  have  gone  down  the  familiar  wood- 
en steps  at  the  corner  of  Dupont  and  Clay  streets,  lead- 
ing from  his  office,  with  blessings  on  their  lips  for  the 
cheery  words  and  more  substantial  tokens  of  his  kindness, 
no  tongue  can  ever  tell,  nor  pen  record. 

He  entertained  at  one  time  a  worthy  ambition  for 
political  preferment.  These  aspirations  originated  not  in 
a  sordid  craving  for  the  emoluments  of  office,  nor  the 
dazzling  allurements  of  popularity ;  but  in  the  conscious- 
ness of  fitness  for  position — an  innate  sense  of  intellectual 
power  such  as  could  draw  towards  it  the  best  elements 
for  efficient  government.  In  the  fall  of  1853,  he  was 
nominated  for  Mayor  by  the  Whigs,  and  shared  in  the 
final  defeat  sustained  by  that  party  throughout  California, 
from  candidate  for  Governor,  down.  It  was  the  last 
Whig  campaign.  From  that  time  he  renounced  politics 
except  during  the  civil  war,  when  he  was  a  pronounced 
Unionist,  aiding  the  cause  by  speech,  money  and  example, 
and  holding  an  official  position  on  the  staff  of  Greneral 
Allen  until  the  close  of  his  life.  Failing  in  the  election 
for  Mayor,  he  thereafter  gave  all  his  energies  to  science; 
and  however  much  the  city  may  have  lost  in  him  as  a 
ruler,  it  is  beyond  question  that  the  community  was 
largely  the  gainer  in  the  exclusive  possession  of  his  great 
professional  usefulness.  His  father,  who  was  still  offici- 
ating as  a  clergyman  in  New  York,  visited  him  in  San 
Francisco  in  1856,  and  died  there  in  October  the  same 
year,  at  the  age  of  seventy. 

Dr.  Gray  never  left  California  except  for  a  brief  visit 
to  New  York  late  in  1859,  where,  during  the  ensuing 
winter,  he  suffered  intensely  from  pneumonia,  and  by  the 
advice  of  his  medical  friends,  returned  speedily  as  a 
means  of  preserving  his  life.  His  recovery  was  regarded 
as  extremely  doubtful — and  sharing  in  these  doubts  him- 


BJENRY  M.    GRAY.  483 

self,  he  characteristically  ordered  his  coffin,  which  was 
]ined  with  lead,  and  had  preparations  made  for  embalming 
in  case  his  decease  should  occur  before  reaching  Califor- 
nia: such  was  his  repugnance  to  the  idea  of  being  buried 
at  sea.  His  health  was  improved,  however,  by  the  voyage. 
He  was  President  of  the  Society  of  California  Pioneers  in 
1861-2,  before  whom,  in  1856,  he  had  delivered  the  an- 
nual address.  This  alone,  among  numerous  similar  ora- 
tions by  others,  has  not  been  preserved,  neither  in  pam- 
phlet form  nor  in  the  columns  of  the  press.  He  spoke 
for  upwards  of  an  hour  from  a  few  notes  which  he  had 
arranged  only  the  night  before,  and  which,  with  his  usual 
carelessness  where  his  own  fame  was  concerned,  he  failed 
to  prepare  for  publication.  It  is  remembered  as  a  deeply 
interesting  discourse,  rich  in  historical  allusions,  clothed 
in  the  most  captivating  forms  of  eloquence,  and  picturing 
the  past  and  future  of  California  with  a  wealth  of  classical 
imagery  and  glowing  beauty  of  diction. 

It  was  in  the  theory  and  practice  of  his  profession  that 
his  mind  and  heart  were  especially  engaged.  He  was  in- 
defatigable in  studies  rendered  necessary  by  the  advance- 
ment of  the  medical  and  its  associate  sciences.  Endowed 
with  peculiar  graces  of  mind  and  person,  his  manner  in 
the  sick  room  showed  consciousness  of  his  own  ability, 
and  at  the  bed-side  his  presence  inspired  a  confidence  al- 
most marvelous.  Not  seldom  has  his  genial  manner  and 
kindness  of  voice  arrested  the  course  of  disease  by  a  mag- 
netic power  eminently  his  own.  Master  of  his  own  feel- 
ings and  mighty  in  his  sympathies,  how  often  has  he 
buoyed  up  the  sinking  heart  of  agonized  parent,  child, 
and  sorrowing  friend.  In  times  of  danger  he  showed  a 
courage  and  fearless  use  of  means  sometimes  called  he- 
roic in  practice.  Nature  seemed  to  have  designed  him 
for  the  work  of  a  physician.  He  investigated  disease  al- 
most intuitively,  arriving  very  quickly  at  conclusions; 
though  where  there  was  the  least  doubt  in  his  mind,  or 
obscurity  in  the  symptoms,  he  was  careful,  patient  and 
untiring,  seldom  giving  an  opinion  that  was  not  verified 
by  the  progress  of  the  case.  After  recognizing  disease  he 
was  never  at  a  loss  for  remedies,  and  had  a  happy  faculty 


484  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

of  making  combinations  to  suit  each  individual  case, 
never  combining  without  being  able  to  give  a  most  satis- 
factory reason  therefor.  His  health  was  such  as  to  forbid 
constant  application  to  professional  duties  for  a  year  pre- 
vious to  his  death.  He  was  industrious  however,  and 
applied  himself  assiduously  until  October,  1862,  when  he 
found  it  necessary  to  resign  the  more  arduous  portion  of 
his  practice.  Thenceforward  until  his  death  he  alternately 
worked  and  rested,  frequently  going  into  the  country  for 
a  brief  relaxation,  and  returning,  recommenced  work  with 
a  determination  far  beyond  his  powers,  until  again  forced 
to  retreat.  He  visited  San  Luis  Obispo  and  San  Rafael 
during  1863,  always  working  hard  while  at  home,  despite 
the  remonstrances  of  his  numerous  friends.  It  seemed 
impossible  for  him  to  remain  in  the  city  without  being 
engaged  in  active  practice.  His  devotion  to  his  friends 
was,  if  possible,  more  than  reciprocated;  which  a  single 
instance  will  illustrate,  though  only  an  example  of  very 
many  similar  attachments  between  his  patients  and  him- 
self. He  returned,  broken  in  health,  to  attend  an  invalid 
lady  in  a  case  of  emergency,  whom  he  had  watched  from 
childhood  through  severe  illness  and  much  sufiferir.g.  Al- 
though worn  down  and  enduring  great  pain  himself,  he 
was  with  her  almost  constantly  for  a  week,  when  death 
terminated  her  sufferings.  He  was  overwhelmed  with 
grief,  and  never  afterwards  recovered  himself,  following 
his  patient  in  about  a  fortnight.  Three  days  before  death 
he  had  attended  a  number  of  patients,  and  was  out  in  the 
street  thirty-six  hours  prior  to  his  decease.  He  died  on 
the  morning  of  September  24th,  1863.  For  eight  hours 
previous  to  dissolution  he  was  speechless,  but  conscious 
of  all  that  was  passing  around  him.  He  had  often  ex- 
pressed a  desire  to  die  holding  a  Mason  by  the  hand.  In 
his  last  moments  he  grasped  the  hand  of  a  friend  present, 
motioning  him  to  a  seat,  when  he  seemed  content,  and  so 
breathed  his  last. 

The  announcement  that  Dr.  Gray  was  dead,  though 
it  did  not  take  his  friends  by  surprise,  fell  like  a  pall 
upon  many  a  sorrowing  household.  Every  one  who  had 
known  him  seemed  to  take  the  event  especially  to  heart. 


HENRY   M.    GRAY.  485 

as  at  the  loss  of  a  near  and  intimate  friend.  Associations 
and  public  bodies  met  and  passed  appropriate  resolutions. 
The  wealthy  and  the  poor  alike  were  mourners — those 
for^the  genial  companion,  these  for  the  generous  benefac- 
tor— all  for  the  skillful,  sympathizing  physician,  who  had 
carried  hope,  life,  courage  and  healing  into  despairing 
hearts  and  homes.  He  died  a  bachelor,  and  upon  the 
Society  of  California  Pioneers  devolved  the  sad  duty  of 
receiving  the  body  at  their  hall,  where  it  lay  in  state  the 
night  preceding  the  funeral.  Quiet  footsteps  came  con- 
tinually through  the  watches  of  that  night — rustling  silks 
and  the  coarse  habiliments  of  po^^'erty  mingling,  as  one 
after  another  lingered  a  moment  and  passed  on — the  sup- 
pressed emotions  of  the  refined  and  self-possessed  not 
less  eloquent  than  more  audible  and  uncontrolled  grief. 
The  casket,  piled  high  with  ever-increasing  floral  offer- 
ings, could  at  last  hold  no  more,  and  the  floor  around  was 
strewn  with  them.  The  services  at  the  funeral,  in  which 
Civic  orders  and  societies  and  Military  organizations  vied 
with  each  other  to  do  honor  to  the  occasion,  were  mem- 
orable and  deeply  impressive.  The  remains,  with  those 
of  his  father,  were  sent  to  New  York,  where  they  rest  in 
Greenwood  Cemetery,  side  by  side. 

We  have  endeavored  thus  briefly  to  depict  Dr.  Gray 
as  the  scientist,  the  physician,  and  the  member  of  society. 
In  conversation  as  in  oratory  he  was  singularly  felicitous. 
His  voice  possessed  that  modulated  musical  quality 
rarely  found  except  in  superior  organizations,  and  which 
with  him,  whether  in  every-day  intercourse  among  his 
friends,  in  an  after-dinner  speech,  or  in  the  more  formal 
parlance  of  an  organized  assemblage,  had  the  same  fascin- 
ating influence,  enhanced  by  the  charm  of  an  unafl'ected 
courtliness  of  manner  that  made  his  presence  eagerly 
sought  in  reunions  of  cultivated  men  and  women.  His 
personal  appearance  was  as  strikingly  handsome  as  his 
manners  were  distinguished.  He  was  a  connoisseur  in 
music,  books,  and  works  of  art,  which  he  was  always  se- 
lecting as  gifts  for  his  patients.  He  had  a  genuine  ap- 
preciation of  the  grandeur  and  beauty  of  nature,  and  the 
correctness  of  an  anatomist  in  the  choice  of  fine  horses, 


486  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

of  which  he  was  particularly  fond.  His  tastes  combining 
the  attributes  of  manliness  and  intellectual  culture,  were 
those  of  the  highly  educated  gentleman.  His  nearest  as- 
sociates recall  him  as  one  of  the  finest  types  of  man^  in 
his  physical  as  well  as  mental  qualifications.  To  have 
enjoyed  his  intimacy  may  be  regarded  as  one  of  those 
legacies  to  which  the  mind,  perhaps  wearied  with  the 
world's  selfishness,  instinctively  turns  when  glancing 
back  into  the  near  past  for  bright  examples  and  pleasant 
memories. 


Delivered  at  the  Anniversary  of  St.  John  the  Baptist, 
AT  THE  Laying  of  the  Corner- Stone  of  the  Masonic 
Temple,  San  Francisco,  June  25th,  1860,  by  the  Grand 
Orator  for  the  Day — Sir  Henry  M.  Gray. 

Brethren  : — Beneath  the  blue  dome  of  this  wide,  unpiHared  firm- 
ament, and  under  the  magnificent  roof  of  a  temple  "not  made  with 
hands,"  we  are  met  in  joyful  assemblage,  upon  a  day  sacred  to  the 
ancient  memories  of  our  Craft,  to  lay  with  appropriate  and  impres- 
sive ceremonies  the  foundation-stone  of  a  Temple,  henceforth  and 
forever  to  be  sacredly  dedicated  to  the  mysteries  and  work  of 
Masonry.   • 

In  due  form  and  manner  the  corn,  wine,  and  oil,  poured  forth 
upon  that  stone,  have  symbolized  the  great  end  and  object  of  Ma- 
sonic life  ;  the  swell  of  joyous  music  with  its  exultant  harmony 
has  awakened  in  our  breasts  the  responsive  echo  ;  the  light  in  a 
thousand  earnest  eyes,  and  the  quickened  throb  of  a  thousand  lov- 
ing hearts,  have  told  how  deeply  this  scene  and  this  hour  have  im- 
pressed themselves  upon  our  very  souls  ;  and  finally,  the  invocation 
of  the  blessing  of  Almighty  God,  to  direct  and  prosper  this  under- 
taking to  its  successful  completion,  has,  while  it  humbly  acknow- 
ledges our  dependence  upon  His  powerful  aid,  given  us  the  trustful 
hope  that  His  paternal  blessing  shall  be  vouchsafed  to  us. 

Brethren,  the  work  is  done  !  In  the  deep  foundations  of  this 
structure  you  have  placed  your  memorial.  For  the  first  time  on  the 
western  shores  of  this  continent,  you  have  set  u]3  the  pillars  of  your 
faith  in  enduring  stone.  In  the  generations  yet  to  come,  who  shall 
gaze  with  pride  upon  this  noble  pile,  and  who  shall  under  its  secure 
shelter  prosecute  the  glorious  mission  which  Masonry  has  entrusted 
to  their  keeping,  your  labor  will  not  be  forgotten.     They  will  recall, 


HENRY   M.    GRAY.  487 

with  proud  and  glowing  retrospects,  the  memory  of  this  day.  They 
will  pay  due  homage  to  the  loyal  faith,  the  loving  interest,  and  the 
deathless  attachment  which  you  held  to  the  great  work  of  Masonry, 
and  which  promj)ted  you,  in  the  very  infancy  of  our  State,  thus  to 
lay  broad  and  deep  the  imperishable  foundations  of  a  Temple, 
which,  while  it  should  be  one  of  the  most  conspicuous  adornments 
of  our  city,  should  also  sei've  as  a  jjei'petual  record  of  that  faith 
which,  in  all  ages  and  in  all  countries,  has,  in  its  ' '  outward  visible 
fonn,"  illustrated  itself  to  the  world  in  all  the  triumiDhsof  architec- 
tural glory,  as,  in  the  manifestations  of  its  inner  life,  it  has  been 
the  pioneer  in  the  vanguard  of  civilization,  charity,  j^eace,  brother- 
ly kindness,  and  good  will  to  men.  If  ever  the  light  burns  dim  up- 
on our  altars,  or  the  hearts  of  the  faithful  fail  them  "because  of 
fear";  if  the  doubter  or  the  skeptic  ask  :  "The  Fathers,  where  are 
they?  "  then  shall  this  Masonic  Temple  answer :  *'  The  same  faith  that 
animated  their  hearts  still  survives  in  their  descendants.  This 
goodly  Tabernacle,  which  the  ancient  craftsmen  builded,  yet  stands 
in  its  pristine  strength  and  beauty,  a  heritage  to  be  sacredly 
guarded  and  preserved  by  us  and  by  those  who  shall  come  after  us. 
So,  evermore,  shall  the  faithful  remembrance  of  our  brethren  yet  to 
be,  preserve  our  memory  green." 

Ail  creeds  and  faiths  have  their  festal  occasions.  The  State  has 
its  days  of  patriotic  jubilee,  the  Church  its  seasons  of  rejoicing.  On 
commemorative  days,  due  homage  is  paid  to  all  who,  in  every  rank 
and  in  every  good  work,  have  adorned  the  age  they  illustrated.  Thus 
religion,  art,  science,  heroism,  virtue,  wherever  their  votaries  have 
ennobled  life  by  grand  achievements,  have  claimed  the  ready  hom- 
age of  the  world.  They  who  have  died  on  the  bloody  fields  of  bat- 
tle for  the  liberties  of  their  country,  where  thousands  in  the  joyous 
msh  of  death  go  down — they  who  in  the  fires  of  martyrdom  have 
yielded  up  their  lives  a  sacrifice  to  principle — they  who  in  toilsome 
solitude  have  worked  out  the  great  problems  of  science,  and  given 
language  and  interpretation  to  the  mute  voices  of  nature — they  who 
with  strong  hands  and  pure  ambitions  have  guided  the  evolving  des- 
tinies of  nations — they  who,  as  the  apostles  of  divinest  charity,  have 
devoted  life,  substance,  influence,  all  to  the  amelioration  of  human 
wrong  or  suffering,  are  alike  canonized  in  the  world's  great  heart, 
and  com^Del  the  homage  of  the  world's  wide  symj^athy. 

This  is  our  festal  day,  my  brethren ;  to  us,  a  day  of  joy  in  a  two- 
fold sense.  This  happy  hour  is  witness  of  a  ceremon}^  of  no  small 
import  to  the  future  of  Masonry  in  this  State  and  on  this  coast.  We 
have  come  up  together,  with  one  accord,  to  aid  in  the  laying  of  the 
corner-stone  of  the  first  Masonic  Temple  erected  within  the  limits  of 
our  national  confederation,  on  the  westward  slopes  of  the  dividing 
mountains.  For  a  brief  space  we  have  forsaken  our  usual  avoca- 
tions ;  and  from  fields  of  waving  grain,  from  work-shops  of  daily  toil, 
from  the  quiet  retreats  of  scientific  pursuits,  from  the  busy  marts  of 
commerce,  from  the  sacred  chancels  of  religion,  we  have  come  with 
"  one  heart,  and  one  mind,"  to  swell  the  pomp  of  this  festive  hour. 
Hallowed  by  oui*  prayers  and  benedictions,  we  have  placed  the  token 


488  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

of  our  affection  to  Masonry  in  the  keeping  of  our  mountain  gTanite. 
Our  loves,  our  hojies,  our  aspirations,  we  place  beside  those  memo- 
rials :  as  soon  may  the  one  perish  as  the  others.  Not  until  the  solid 
rock  fe-hall  melt  in  the  consuming  fires  of  the  final  conflagration, 
shall  die  out  in  our  hearts  the  noble  teachings  of  our  Order.  Not 
even  when  the  elements  themselves  shall  yield  to  the  inevitable 
laws  of  decay  and  dissolution,  shall  the  pure,  eternal,  imperishable 
principles  upon  which  our  faith  is  based,  perish  or  be  lost. 

There  is  no  eternity  to  matter.  The  adamantine  walls  of  earth 
themselves  must  crumble  into  dust:  and  no  work  of  man's  hand 
can  withstand  the  silent  tooth  of  time.  The  mighty  monuments  of 
the  forgotten  past  reveal  themselves  to  us  only  in  dim  traditions  or 
in  almost  un distinguishable  fragments,  puzzling  the  lore  of  the  an- 
tiquarian and  baffling  the  light  of  science.  They  leave  us  like  the 
mariners  on  the  wrecking  midnight  sea,  looking — and  oh,  how  hope- 
lessly— for  the  coming  light.  But  principles  cannot  die.  Truth  is 
eternal.  Justice,  equality,  fraternal  love,  charity,  faith,  hope,  are 
all  invulnerable,  and  immortal  all.  They  are  but  the  emanations  of 
the  eternal  good — sparks  from  the  eternal  fire — drops  from  the  ever- 
flowing  river  of  immortal  life.  Like  the  deathless  source  from 
which  they  sjorang,  they  also  (albeit  in  clouded  manifestation)  must 
claim  the  high  prerogative  of  immortality.  So,  brethren,  with  the 
inner  life  of  Masonry.  It  cannot  die.  Its  temples  may  totter  to 
the  dust,  and  its  visible  tokens  be  utterly  lost,  but  it  will  survive. 
Its  spirit  is  the  spirit  of  the  "All-working  Good" — its  work  is  the 
practical  embodiment  of  all-working  benevolence — its  mission  on 
this  earth  is  but  the  reflection  and  exemplification  of  that  divinest 
of  all  virtues — Charity  ! 

Aside  from  the  event  which  has  convened  us  together,  we  enjoy 
another  source  of  congratulation.  This  is  one  of  our  ''holy  days," 
set  apart  and  dedicated  to  the  memory  of  the  holy  Saints  John. 
Since  the  early  primitive  rule  of  our  first  Grand  Master,  King  Sol- 
omon, with  the  passing  away  of  the  ancient  dispensation — with  all 
its  glorious  sj'mbols,  types,  and  shadows — with  all  its  rigid  enforce- 
ment of  the  law  as  a  penalty  for  disobedience — with  all  the  magnif- 
icent surroundings  which  environed  the  ancient  Masonry,  and  the 
rites  and  ceremonies  of  the  early  Temple  worship — with  all  the 
forms  and  restrictions  and  subordinations,  working  in  their  iron 
channels — the  lapse  of  ages  and  the  changing  conditions  of  society 
brought  an  epoch  in  which  milder  laws  and  more  tolerant  systems 
were  demanded  by  the  necessities  of  the  time.  The  early  morning 
glow  upon  the  eastern  hill-tops  announced  the  coming  of  a  brighter 
day;  the  softer  airs  that  swept  westward  from  the  ancient  home  of 
the  stern  wide-browed  prophets  and  patriarchs,  foretold  the  coming 
of  a  more  genial  summer  ;  the  dove,  with  the  olive  branch  of  peace, 
was  flying  o'er  the  stormy  water  in  search  of  a  resting-i)lace  for  her 
weary  feet ;  and  then,  when  among  the  crumbling  fragments  of  the 
earlier  civilizations  Masonry  could  find  no  permanent  abiding  place, 
she  swept  down  the  cloudy  and  perturbed  centuries,  until  she  rested 
under  the  shadow  of  the  new  dispensation  of  ]Deacec 


HENRY   M.    GRAY.  489 

The  earth  had  been  convulsed  for  a  thousand  years  ;  thrones, 
dynasties  and  empires  were  passing  through  all  the  mutations  of  so- 
cial and  political  existence ;  yet  amid  all  this  turbulent  torrent  of 
change  in  our  world,  the  precious  Ark  of  our  Covenant  floated 
safely  down,  until  it  rested  securely  upon  the  Ararat  of  perpetual 
repose. 

Then  lived  in  Holy  Land  two  holy  men — two  Johns.  Tlie  one, 
the  Baptist;  the  other,  the  Evangelist;  men  of  extraordinary  yet 
diverse  characters,  but  both  the  living  embodiments  of  the  highest 
lessons  of  Masonic  wisdom.  The  one,  the  impersonation  of  temp- 
erance, courage,  self-sacrifice  and  heroic  suffering  for  conscience* 
sake ;  the  other,  the  type  of  gentleness,  meekness,  sympathy,  char- 
ity, brotherly  kindness,  and  holy  love.  These  men,  so  exalted  above 
their  fellows,  so  set  aside  and  stamped  with  the  mark  of  divine  no- 
bility, were  eminently  fitted  to  succeed  the  august  King  of  Israel 
as  the  patrons  and  exemplars  of  oui*  Order.  Hence  they,  not  alone 
and  not  chiefly  as  the  forerunnei-s  and  disciples  of  a  new  ecclesias- 
tical dispensation,  but  from  the  singular  purity  of  their  lives,  their 
devotion  to  the  fundamental  tenets  of  Masonic  faith,  and  their  sac- 
rifice of  all  earthly  good  for  the  cause  that  engrossed  their  whole 
being,  have  been  for  two  thousand  years  the  loved  and  venerated 
high  priests  of  our  Masonic  faith.  He  of  whom  we  speak  to-day 
died  a  martyr's  death.  He  perished  in  vindication  of  the  teachings 
of  his  life.  He  fell  an  heroic  sacrifice  to  the  principles  upon  which 
our  Order  rests. 

We  speak  of  martyrdoms,  and  they  are  glorious.  We  speak  of 
heroisms,  and  they  are  glorious.  How  they  stand  out  in  the  past, 
like  landmarks  in  the  life-gloom,  these  martyrs  for  the  good  ! — these 
heroes  for  the  right !  Some  have  sunk  on  the  battle-field ;  some 
have  watered  the  scaffold  with  their  blood ;  others  have  perished  in 
the  agonies  of  fire.  These  have  been  of  one  race  and  language ; 
those  of  another.  This  endured  all  things  for  one  faith;  that  for 
another:  but  all,  whatever  their  nation,  or  sect,  or  lineage,  were 
alike  the  warriors  of  humanity,  and  perished  that  mankind  might 
be  free.  The  great  and  good  of  all  eras  form  one  great  brother- 
hood. Thank  God,  for  having  thus  linked  distant  ages  together  by 
the  ties  of  a  common  sympathy.  The  great  souls  scattered  along 
the  highway  of  history  are  bound  one  to  the  other  by  an  electric 
chain ;  and  thus  the  influence  of  heroic  deeds  tlirills  from  century 
to  century  down  the  long  avenue  of  Time. 

This  day,  my  brethren,  is  held  in  sacred  commemoration  of  St. 
John  the  Baptist,  throughout  the  whole  Masonic  w^orld.  Eveiy  as- 
piration and  prayer  that  arises  to-day  from  your  own  full  heai*ts,  is 
met  in  the  silent  and  illimitable  fields  of  air  by  a  million  aspira- 
tions in  every  land  and  clime,  from  hearts  as  full  and  deep  as 
yours. 

All  along  the  cloudy  pathway  of  time,  our  Craft  have  left  their 
ever-enduring  land-marks.  While  yet  an  operative  organization, 
spreading  from  land  to  land,  in  Lodges  of  Labor,  they  have  erected 
their  mighty  monuments,  which,  to  this  day,  are  the  wonder  and 


490  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

the  glory  of  the  world.  The  order  and  system  which  marked  the 
building  of  the  first  temple,  followed  them  in  the  latter  ages;  and 
although  in^the  erection  of  the  vast  creations  of  Masonic  skill,  the 
busy  sounds  of  labor  were  heard  on  every  hand,  as  the  grand  arches 
and  pinnacles  and  towers  rose  from  their  solid  foundations  to  the 
heavens,  yet  the  same  beautiful  plan  of  work  by  which  the  magnifi- 
cent structure  of  the  King  of  Israel 

"  Rose  like  an  exhalation,  with  the  sound 
Of  dulcet  symphonies,  and  voices  sweet," 
governed  the  Craft  in  the  building  of  those  colossal  triumphs  of 
architectural  genius,  which  shall  forever  demand  the  admiration  and 
worship  of  the  human  intellect. 

Passing  from  this  brief  review  of  our  subject,  let  us  for  a  mo- 
ment consider  our  institution  in  its  adaptation  to  the  wants  of  hu- 
manity; its  fitness  as  the  almoner  of  the  holiest  charity;  its  laws 
and  precepts  as  the  embodiment,  not  only  of  the  purest  morality, 
but  presenting  likewise  a  frame  of  government  fitted  for  all  condi- 
tions of  life,  for  all  races  of  people,  and  for  all  states  of  society. 
It  sprang  into  existence  far  back  in  the  distaiit  ages,  over  whose 
history  rests  the  pall  of  everlasting  silence ;  it  gleamed  out  of  that 
darkness  as  the  light  of  history  began  to  irradiate  the  gloom  only 
in  dim  and  fabulous  traditions  ;  it  took  organic  shape  and  practical 
development  in  the  earliest  days  of  the  ancient  Kings  of  Israel ; 
and  its  culminating  point  was  reached  in  that  perfect  system  of 
work  and  government  which  presided  over  the  erection  of  that  mi- 
raculous structure — that  marble  poem  of  consummate  genius  whose 
lovely  beauty,  shining  from  the  sacred  mountain,  gleamed  to  the  re- 
motest horizon  like  a  star. 

Thus  it  has  come  down  to  us  from  the  earliest  times.  Through 
all  the  changes  of  empires,  and  amid  all  the  revolutions  of  govern- 
ments, it  has  preserved  its  existence.  The  altar  now  stands  where 
it  stood  in  the  days  of  the  first  Masters;  and  the  enkindled  fires 
and  the  emblematic  lights  still  shed  their  beams  to  illuminate  the 
surrounding  darkness.  It  has  outlived  the  Temple  which  its  an- 
cient Craftsmen  builded ;  but  the  same  laws  that  held  it  in  harmo- 
nious union  then,  alike  preserve  its  unity  and  integrity  now.  The 
forms  of  architectural  beauty  and  design  may  have  gone  down  in 
the  dust  of  the  vanished  ages,  but  the  soul  and  spirit  of  the  design, 
order  and  beauty,  yet  lingers  in  our  Cratt  and  hallows  all  its  work. 

From  Praxitelean  shapes,  whose  marble  smiles 

"Fill  the  hushed  air  with  everlasting  love ; " 

from  towers  and  arches,  moldering  among  their  mocking  ivy ;  from 
the  solemn  cloisters  of  many  an  old  cathedral ;  from  the  dim  aisles 
of  grand  old  woods,  whose  mighty  trees  are  evermore  repeating 
"  Their  old  poetic  legends  to  the  winds  ; " 

from  the  stupendous  caves  with  all  their  sparry  grots  ;  and  from  the 
rock-invested  gorges  of  the  mountains,  whose  beetling  walls  might 
serve  as  the  bastions  of  a  world,  where  the  sublime  Ai-chitect  of  the 


HEXRY   M.   GRAY.  491 

Universe  has  in  the  play  of  His  omnipotence  set  those  copies  for 
human  genius  to  imitate  ;  from  each  and  all,  the  lesson  falls  with  a 
deep  significance  on  the  Mason's  heart  Architecture,  its  first  great 
operative  application,  compelled  the  recognition  of  the  laws  of  uni- 
ty and  order.  From  the  study  and  contemplation  of  the  principles 
upon  which  the  harmony  of  the  material  universe  depended,  the 
transition  was  natural  and  easy  to  the  recognition  and  adoption  of 
those  laws  governing  the  life,  conduct,  character,  and  actions,  upon 
which  alone,  as  upon  a  comer  stone,  could  be  erected  the  moral  and 
spiritual  Temple  of  Masonry. 

Neither  the  time  nor  the  occasion  demand  from  me  an  exposition 
of  the  tenets  and  principles  of  the  Craft.  I  may,  however,  be  allowed 
for  a  brief  moment  to  allude  to  some  of  the  excellencies  of  our  Order. 

And  first,  its  sublime  equality.  Its  first  principle  is  the  recogni- 
tion of  the  humanity  of  the  man,  and  the  acknowledgment  of  the 
fraternal  ties  that  bind  all  men  together.  AVithin  its  sacred  enclos- 
ure there  can  be  no  rank  or  caste.  The  royal  ruler  of  a  mighty 
realm ;  the  mitred  prelate ;  the  soldier,  bearing  upon  his  body  the 
scars  and  trophies  of  a  hundred  fights;  the  philosopher,  whose 
keen  vision  has  explored  all  the  intricacies  of  natural  or  political 
wisdom ;  the  soul  of  science  that  hath  sojourned  among  the  stars  or 
dived  into  the  nethermost  depths — are  all  alike.  Brethren  all — 
made  so  by  the  recognition  of  each  individual  humanity — and  each 
an  equal  scholar  in  the  school  of  virtue.  "Love  one  another"  is 
written  upon  the  door-posts,  and  the  word  "Brother"  embraces  in 
its  comprehensive  dialect  all  ranks,  from  the  Neophyte  to  the  Su- 
preme Master. 

While  prejudice  alienates — while  sect  and  nation,  lineage  and 
language,  wealth  and  power,  set  up  evermore  the  barriers  which 
keep  men  asunder — while  political  distinctions  and  religious  difier- 
ences  but  deepen  animosities  and  engender  bitterness — Masonry- 
presents  a  platform  and  a  principle  broad  and  firm  enough  for  all 
the  world  to  rest  upon  in  peace. 

In  the  grand  Choral  Hymn  of  the  noble  Schiller,  I  find  these 
lines,  which  could  only  have  sprung  from  a  heart  incandescent  with 
Masonic  heat : — 

*'  Spark  from  the  fire  that  gods  have  fed — 

Love — thou  Elysian  child  divine — 
Fire-drunk,  our  airy  footsteps  tread, 

Oh,  Holy  One,  thy  holy  shrine. 
Strong  custom  rends  us  from  each  other. 

Thy  magic  all  together  brings. 
And  man  in  man  but  hails  a  brother. 

Wherever  rests  thy  gentle  wings. 
Embrace,  ye  millions,  let  this  kiss, 

Brothers,  embrace  the  earth  below, 
Yon  starry  worlds,  that  shine  on  this. 

One  common  Father  know." 

Masonry  is,  in  short,  the  highest  expresssion  of  the  idea  of  Fra- 
ternity, and  it  is  destined  to  be  one  of  the  most  active  agents  in  the 
accomplishment  of  that  world-wide  fraternization  which  so  espec- 


492  HEPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

ially  marks  the  tendencies  of  the  present  age,  and  whose  pro- 
gressive development  will  ultimately  result  in  drawing  to  a  nearer 
and  more  perfect  union  all  the  children  of  the  earth.  It  offends  no 
prejudice ;  it  opposes  no  sect.  It  stands  aloof  from  all  the  noisy 
clamors  of  the  day.  Its  mission  is  in  secret  and  in  silence.  It 
*'does  good  and  communicates/'  but  the  right  hand  knows  not 
what  the  left  hand  doeth.  It  is  the  minister  to  want,  the  angel  of 
consolation  to  patient  suffering,  the  handmaid  of  religion;  for 
what  religion  teaches  from  lofty  pulpits,  it  practically  performs. 
Wherever  there  is  want  or  sorrow,  there  is  Masonry,  the  reliever ; 
wherever  is  wrong  or  oppression,  there  is  Masonry,  the  strong  arm 
of  support ;  wherever  is  death,  or  sickness,  which  is  the  shadow  of 
death,  there  also  is  Masonry,  to  bind  up  the  wound,  to  close  the 
fixed  and  ghastly  eye,  and  then,  with  reverent  care,  to  commit  the 
dead  body  to  the  silence  and  retirement  of  the  grave. 

How  often  have  you,  in  this  land  of  strange  vicissitudes,  been 
called  upon  to  minister  to  such  needs  as  these  ?  The  strong,  bold- 
hearted  adventurer,  struggling  amid  discouragements  and  priva- 
tions for  his  children's  bread,  is  suddenly  arrested  by  the  palsying 
hand  of  disease.  Poverty  and  want  environ  him.  A  stranger  in  a 
land  of  strangers,  to  whom  shall  he  go  for  succor?  The  swift  tides 
of  life  rush  by  him,  and  he  is  cast  a  stranded  wreck  upon  the  shore. 
In  the  desolation  and  agony  of  his  heart,  he  lays  down  to  die ;  no 
friend  near  that  death  couch — no  ministering  voice  of  consolation — 
no  brother's  hand  to  clasp  the  nerveless  fingers — no  upward-point- 
ing angel  of  hope  to  guide  the  way  to  immortal  life. 

But  stay,  some  one  knows  that  poor  man  !  Some  one  in  all  this 
bright  world  out  of  which  he  is  passing  into  the  unknown  land, 
must  know  that  man !  Surely,  he  shall  not  die,  and  make  no  sign ! 
Oh  no  !  He  has  found  friends.  In  almost  the  last  agonized  con- 
vulsions of  his  members,  when  his  tongue  could  no  longer  syllable 
his  thoughts,  he  found  a  brother — a  brother  in  a  higher  sense  than 
the  claim  w^hich  our  common  humanity  in  suffering  or  sore  distress 
demands  of  every  man — one,  whose  soul  was  knit  to  that  vanishing 
soul  in  all  the  gentle  ministrations  of  love  and  charity,  by  ties  as 
strong,  aye  stronger,  than  those  which  knit  the  souls  of  Jonathan 
and  David. 

This  picture,  brethren,  is  a  picture  of  practical  Masoniy.  You 
have  it  framed  in  all  jowc  hearts ;  its  colors  cannot  fade  from  your 
memories.  In  your  own  dark  hours  of  desolation,  the  light  from  it 
will  be  a  beacon  pointing  upward  to  Heaven  !• 

And  now,  the  hour  for  our  departure  has  arrived.  Henceforth, 
our  paths  diverge.  From  manifold  pursuits  in  life,  and  from  dis- 
tant homes,  moved  by  a  common  impulse,  we  have  come  up  to  wor- 
ship near  this  sacred  shrine,  and  to  renew  the  vows  of  fealty  to  our 
common  faith.  I  trust  the  hour  has  not  been  spent  in  vain,  and 
that  it  has  been  good  for  us  to  have  been  together.  In  this  inter- 
change of  kindly  greeting,  we  have  strengthened  our  fraternal  ties, 
and  in  this  common  labor  dedicated  to  our  common  cause,  we  have 
strengthened  the  hands  of  our  Craft  in  every  land. 


HENRY   M.   GRAY.  493 

As  Masons  of  California,  this  hour  is  full  of  deep  significance. 
You  are  the  representatives  of  the  world.  From  distant  lands  and 
climes,  from  eveiy  rank  and  station  in  life,  from  the  most  dissimilar 
conditions  of  phj^sical  and  political  existence,  you  have  assembled 
on  the  western  shore  of  our  continent,  a  family  of  brethren  bound 
together  by  a  common  interest  and  protected  by  the  glorious  Con- 
stitution of  our  common  country.  You  are  one,  as  citizens;  and 
owing  allegiance  to  a  common  law,  you  share  alike  in  the  glory  and 
advancement  of  the  State.  In  your  Masonic  relations  you  present 
the  same  anomaly.  Of  various  tribes  and  nations,  of  parentages  and 
educations  the  most  diverse,  with  wide  and  high  partition-walls 
separating  you  one  from  the  other,  you  yet,  here,  to-day,  meet  upon 
common  ground.  We  are  all  one — on  earth,  the  great  all-embrac- 
ing, loving  soul  of  Masonry  claims  us  as  her  common  children — 
and  in  the  heaven  above  us,  the  One  Eternal  Father  ! 

Before  we  go  hence,  let  us  review  our  work.  Upon  a  solid 
foundation  we  have  placed  our  memorial  stone.  It  hides  from  mor- 
tal eyes  (we  hope  for  ages  yet  to  come)  in  its  safe  and  silent  tomb, 
the  records  of  this  day.  In  all  its  appointments,  and  with  all  the 
glory  of  its  architectural  design,  this  temple  shall  rise  to  its  lofty 
roof,  a  fitting  and  noble  testimonial  to  the  devotion  of  the  Masonry 
of  our  State.  But  there  must  be  something^  brethren,  underneath 
that  stone,  and  underneath  the  foundation  which  supports  it,  deeper 
than  all  this,  or  the  building  will  not  stand.  The  master  builder 
may  perform  his  work  never  so  well ;  the  apprentices  and  craftsmen 
may  labor  in  due  subordination  to  the  authority  of  the  masters  ;  the 
massive  walls  may  rise  in  all  their  solid  strength  to  heaven ;  the 
costly  jewels  of  our  work  may  adorn  its  various  chambers;  the  fires 
may  be  lighted  upon  its  inner  altars ;  the  entrance  may  be  well  and 
duly  guarded ;  but  all,  all  will  be  in  vain,  unless  there  is  a  deeper, 
surer,  and  more  stable  foundation  than  that  on  which  our  corner 
stone  reposes.  What  is  that  nether  stone?  What  is  that  upon 
which  a  true  temple  to  Masonry  must  be  built?  Ah,  brethren,  it 
is  the  deep,  underlying,  imperishable  foundation  of  Masonic  love, 
and  Masonic  unity.  With  that  beneath  the  material  foundation,  this 
Temple  is  indeed  secure  and  indestructible.  The  foundations  of  the 
globe  had  need  of  no  more  permanent  coi-ner  stone  than  that  structure, 
under  whose  deep  bases  repose  Truth,  Charity,  and  Brotherly  Love. 

One  prayer,  one  spontaneous  aspiration,  is  a  fitting  conclusion 
to  this  hour :  Oh  Temple  !  planned  with  the  cunning  skill  of  labor- 
ious att,  rise  in  all  thy  majesty  and  beauty  inward  the  skies?  May 
thy  walls  be  strength,  and  all  thy  tabernacles  peace !  May  the 
votaries  who  shall  in  the  long  march  of  centui'ies  enter  thy  sacred 
porches,  find  evermore  therein  repose,  refreshment,  peace  !  May 
the  light  of  thy  sacred  altars  burn  ever  like  a  star!  May  the 
"stranger  and  the  sojourner  in  the  land"  ever  enjoy  the  blessings 
of  thy  welcome  and  thy  shelter ;  and  when  the  hour  of  thy  decay 
and  dissolution  crumbles  thee  to  earth,  may  there  be  found  thous- 
ands of  faithful  and  devoted  hearts  to  raise  thee  from  thy  ashes 
with  renewed  splendor  and  more  enduring  life  !     "So  mote  it  be. '* 


TOD  ROBINSON. 

jpY    THE    ^DITOR, 


THE  ancestors  of  this  gentleman  were,  on  his  father's 
side,  English,  on  his  mother  s,  Scotch-Irish.  They 
emigrated  to  Xorth  Carolina  at  so  early  a  day  that  all 
tradition  of  the  event  is  lost.  His  father  was  a  merchant 
and  planter  in  that  State.  At  a  time  when  it  was  a  life 
office,  he  held  the  position  of  Clerk  of  the  County  Court 
for  Anson  County.  In  this  county.  Tod  Robinson  was 
born,  A.  D.  1812.  When  he  was  quite  young,  his  father 
resigned  his  office  and  removed  with  his  family  to 
Alabama. 

Tod  Robinson  came  to  California  from  Texas,  by  way 
of  Panama,  in  September,  1850.  He  landed  at  San  Fran- 
cisco, but  not  tarrying  there,  pushed  on  up  the  Sacra- 
mento river  to  Sacramento  city,  then  the  liveliest  and 
busiest  mining  camp  in  the  State.  Here  he  settled,  and 
entered  immediately  on  the  practice  of  law.  He  very 
soon  attained  prominence  and  success.  He  had  not  been 
in  the  city  a  year  when  Judge  Thomas  resigned  his  posi- 
tion as  District  Judge  of  the  Sixth  Judicial  District,  em- 
bracing Sacramento  county,  and  Gov.  Burnett  appointed 
Mr.  Robinson  to  fill  the  vacancy.  For  this  honorable  and 
responsible  position  his  extensive  legal  attainments  and 
his  incorruptible  integrity  eminently  fitted  him.  During 
the  short  period  of  his  occupancy  of  this  office.  Judge 
Robinson  won  the  undivided  esteem  of  the  bar  and  the 
undisguised  reverence  of  the  people  of  his  district.     In 


49  G  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

the  list  of  able  jurists  who  have  graced  the  bench  of  the 
Sixth  Judicial  District,  Judge  Robinson's  name  shines 
with  unfading  lustre.  He  had  occupied  the  position  only 
a  few  months,  when,  in  October,  1851,  the  Whig  party,  to 
the  principles  of  which  he  was  devotedly  attached,  unso- 
licited, nominated  him  as  their  candidate  for  Supreme 
Judge ;  whereupon  he  resigned  his  place  on  the  District 
bench,  and  accepted  the  nomination  for  the  higher  office. 
The  Whig  party  being  in  a  minority,  he  was  defeated. 
The  election  over,  and  having  aided  so  materially  in  pre- 
serving the  organization  of  his  party,  at  the  expense  of 
his  own  personal  advancement  and  comfort.  Judge  Rob- 
inson resumed  practice  in  Sacramento.  He  formed  a 
partnership  with  Murray  Morrison,  since  Judge  of  the 
Seventeenth  Judicial  District,  which  continued  for  two 
years.  In  1853,  Judge  Robinson  was  again  nominated 
by  his  party  for  the  Supreme  Bench.  Anticipating  de- 
feat, he  yet  obeyed  with  alacrity  the  call  of  his  party  to 
carry  the  banner  of  Whiggery  in  the  final  charge  upon  a 
triumphant  foe.  The  result  was  as  expected — the  utter 
overthrow  of  the  proud  and  gallant  party  to  whose  for- 
tunes he  had  clung  so  steadfastly,  and  in  whose  last 
struggles  he  had  been  so  conspicuous.  Judge  Robinson 
again  returned  to  the  profession  in  Sacramento.  Soon 
after  the  general  election  in  1853,  he  entered  into  part- 
nership with  H.  0.  Beatty,  lately  Chief  Justice  of  the 
Supreme  Court  of  Nevada,  and  James  B.  Haggin,  an  old 
and  wealthy  citizen  of  Sacramento  and  San  Francisco, 
now  residing  in  Paris.  This  partnership  lasted  two  or 
three  years,  when  Mr.  Haggin  withdrew,  and  his  place  in 
the  firm  was  filled  by  Hon.  C.  T.  Botts,  afterwards  Judge 
of  the  Sixth  Judicial  District.  Judge  Botts  being  ap- 
pointed to  the  bench,  Mr.  Heacock,  subsequently  State 
Senator  from  Sacramento,  entered  the  firm.  Judge  Rob- 
inson's connection  with  Judge  Beatty  continued  till  the 
year  1862. 

Judge  Robinson  confined  himself  exclusively  to  his 
profession  for  several  years,  during  which  time  he  built 
up  an  extensive  and  lucrative  business.  During  this  im- 
portant period  in  the  history  of  Sacramento,  his  fidelity 


TOD   ROBINSON.  497 

to  his  profession  and  his  able  management  of  the  heavy 
litigation  he  was  called  upon  to  conduct,  spread  his  fame 
as  a  lawyer  throughout  California. 

In  1862,  he  accepted  the  Democratic  nomination  for 
Attorney  General.  In  1863,  he  was  nominated  by  the 
same  party  for  Supreme  Judge,  upon  the  reorganization 
of  the  Supreme  Court.  On  both  occasions  he  was  de- 
feated with  the  rest  of  his  ticket. 

He  had  now  resided  in  Sacramento  for  thirteen  years. 
The  practice  of  law  being  almost  dead  in  that  place,  which 
the  great  flood  of  1860-61  had  almost  depopulated,  he 
removed  to  Virginia  City,  Nevada,  where  he  resided  eight- 
een months.  While  residing  in  that  State,  he  was  nom- 
inated by  the  Democratic  State  Convention  for  Clerk  of 
the  Supreme  Court.  He  could  easily  have  been  nomi- 
nated for  the  higher  place  of  Supreme  Judge,  but  his  friends 
determined  to  give  him  the  nomination  for  the  first-named 
position,  because  of  the  great  emokmients  attached  to  it. 
However,  his  party  being  defeated,  the  hopes  of  his  friends 
were  not  realized. 

Early  in  the  year  1865,  Judge  Robinson  returned  to 
California,  and  settled  with  his  family  in  San  Francisco, 
where  he  has  since  resided.  He  still  continues  to  act  as 
counsellor  at  law,  but  his  health  being  very  feeble,  he  is 
seldom  in  his  office  and  rarely  seen  in  court. 

Judge  Robinson  ranks  high  as  an  impressive  and  elo- 
quent speaker.  He  is  a  cogent,  logical  reasoner,  a  racy 
debater,  and  can  hurl  the  shaft  of  irony  with  cutting  ef- 
fect. His  clear  and  mellow  utterances,  his  earnest  man- 
ner, his  dignified,  polished  diction,  often  reaching  solem- 
nity in  its  calm  and  graceful  flow,  render  him  at  all  times 
an  agreeable  and  pleasing  speaker.  He  is  quite  fond  of 
poetry,  and  a  close  student  of  Shakspeare.  In  addressing 
public  audiences  he  is  decidedly  happy  in  his  quotations 
from  the  immortal  bard  of  nature.  He  is  devoted  to  his 
large  family,  in  whose  society  he  passes  nearly  all  of  his 
time.     His  private  life  is  without  a  blemish. 

Judge  Robinson  has  nearly  passed  the  meridian  of  his 
usefulness;      His  voice  will  probably  never  again  thrill 
the  listening  crowd,  nor  his  form  be  seen  rising  to  con- 
32 


498  KEPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OP   THE   PACIFIC. 

front  the  expectant  jury.  He  has  not  been  exempt  from 
the  ordinary  lot  of  mortals.  His  life  has  been  eventful 
and  his  career  checkered.  Disappointments  have  visited 
and  trials  perplexed  him.  Time  has  laid  his  hand  heavily 
upon  him.  Disease  has  racked  and  enfeebled  his  frame. 
He  expects  soon  to  be  called  upon  to  '^  resign  this  pleas- 
ing, anxious  being."  But  his  heart  is  still  young — nor 
time,  nor  disappointment,  nor  disaster  can  ever  subdue 
his  free  spirit  or  ''chill  his  mental  glow."  His  independ- 
ent nature,  and  his  devotion  to  a  principle,  command  the 
respect  of  his  political  opponents.  He  has  always  dared  to 
pursue  the  course  his  sense  of  right  suggested,  regardless 
of  the  clamors  of  the  fickle  multitude.  He  could  not  be 
flattered  by  the  breath  of  popular  applause  nor  be  made 
to  submit  to  the  demands  of  the  mob — "  that  many-head-' 
ed,  monster  thing."  The  injunction  of  his  own  favorite 
poet  has  been  to  him  an  ever  present  guide  and  com- 
forter. 

"  This  above  all !     To  thine  own  self  be  true ! 
And  it  must  follow,  as  the  night  the  day, 
Thou  canst  not  then  be  false  to  any  man."' 

The  Editor  trusts  that  he  has  not  passed  beyond  the 
limit  of  a  faithful  biographical  sketch  in  the  above  expres- 
sions. He  could  not  have  said  less,  in  humble  acknowl- 
edgment of  past  kindness  on  the  part  of  his  subject,  in 
the  bosom  of  whose  family  he  found  shelter,  in  boyhood, 
from  a  multitude  of  woes  which  had  nearly  crushed  his 
spirit. 

The  following  terse  language  applies  to  Judge  Robin- 
son with  as  much  force  and  propriety  as  to  Dr.  Akenside : 

''  He  is  exclusive  in  his  social  taste,  but  with  a  high 
standard  of  integrity;  more  proud  than  vain,  and  more 
fastidious  than  companionable.  Intimately  known  to  but 
few,  he  is  respected  by  all  as  a  gentleman  and  a  scholar. 
His  formal  address  might  impress  a  stranger  with  the  idea 
of  accomplished  pedantry;  but  once  fairly  engaged  in 
conversation  with  a  genial  and  appreciative  auditor,  the 
philosopher  and  the  man  of  cultivated  taste  and  elevated 
sentiment  appears  conspicuous." 


# 


sf^i 


# 


■V 


Of  ■I'J.z        ^ 


UAJrCVKN- ISAAC    L  RTKVF':NS. 


ISAAC   INGALLS  STEVENS. 


By  the  ^ditor.* 

GENERAL  Stevens  was  born  at  Andover,  Massachusetts, 
in  1817.  Of  his  ancestry  and  early  boyhood,  the 
Editor  lias  not  been  able  to  procure  any  information.  He 
entered  as  a  cadet  the  United  States  Military  Academy  at 
West  Point,  July  1st,  1835,  and  graduated  there  July  1st, 
1839,  ranking  first  in  a  class  of  thirty-one  members  : 
Gen.  Halleck  standing  No.  3,  Gen.  E.  0.  G.  Ord,  No.  17, 
and  Gen.  E.  R.  S.  Canby,  No.  30.  He  was  immediately 
promoted  in  the  army  to  second  Lieutenant,  Corps  of 
Engineers.  From  that  time  until  1841,  he  was  engaged 
as  Assistant  Engineer  in  the  building  of  Fort  Adams,  New- 
port harbor,  Rhode  Island.  On  July  1st,  1840,  he  was 
promoted  to  First  Lieutenant,  Corps  of  Engineers,  and  was 
engaged  upon  the  repairs  of  Fairhaven  Battery,  New  Bed- 
ford harbor,  Massachusetts,  1841-42,  and  of  the  defences 
of  Portsmouth  harbor,  New  Hampshire,  1842-46.  Dur- 
ing the  greater  part  of  this  latter  period,  he  served  also 
as  Superintending  Engineer  in  building  Fort  Knox,  at 
the  Narrows  of  Penobscot  river,  Maine. 

During  the  Mexican  war  he  made  for  himself  a  bril- 
liant record.  When  that  struo:g;le  commenced  he  was  at- 
tached  to  Gen.  Scott's  staff.  He  was  engaged  as  Adjutant 
of  Engineers  in  the  siege  of  Vera  Cruz,  March  9th, 
1847  ;  and  was  conspicuous  for  his  boldness  and  fearless 
bearing  at  the  reconnoissance  of  the  Penon,  August  12th- 
13th;  of  San  Antonio,  August  18th;  at  the  battle  of  Con- 

*  For  explanatory  note,  see  Preface. 


500  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF  THE    PACIFIC. 

treras,  August  19th;  the  battle  of  Cherubusco,  August 
20th;  at  the  battle  of  Molino  del  Rey,  September  8th; 
reconnoissance  of  the  southern  approaches  to  the  city  of 
Mexico,  September  9th-13th;  battle  of  Chapultepec,  Sep- 
tember 13th,  and  at  the  assault  and  capture  of  the  city 
of  Mexico,  September  13th-14th.  At  the  attack  upon 
the  Mexican  Capital  he  was  in  Gen.  Worth's  division,  and 
was  severely  wounded  in  the  San  Cosme  suburb. 

^'For  gallant  and  meritorious  conduct"  in  the  battles 
of  Contreras  and  Cherubusco,  Mexico,  he  was  brevetted 
Captain  in  the  regular  army,  August  20th,  1849,  and  on 
September  13th,  for  like  conduct  at  the  battle  of  Chapul- 
tepec, was  brevetted  Major. 

In  1848,  Major  Stevens  was  engaged  as  Superintend- 
ing Engineer  in  building  Fort  Knox,  Maine  ;  of  repairs  of 
Portsmouth  fortifications,  New  Hampshire  ;  of  the  im- 
provements of  the  Savannah  river,  Georgia  ;  and  of  build- 
ing Forts  Pulaski  and  Jackson,  in  the  latter  State. 

From  September  14th.  1849,  to  March,  1853,  he  was 
principal  assistant  to  Professor  Bache,  of  the  Coast  Sur- 
vey, and  had  charge  of  the  Coast  Survey  Office  at  Wash- 
ington, D.  C.  In  the  early  part  of  the  latter  year  he  was 
a  member  of  the  Commission  for  devising  plans  for  the 
improvement  of  the  James  and  Appomattox  rivers,  Vir- 
ginia, and  of  Cape  Fear  river,  North  Carolina. 

On  March  16th,  1853,  Major  Stevens  resigned  his  posi- 
tion in  the  army,  to  enter  the  civil  service  of  his  country. 
President  Pierce,  who  had  just  been  inaugurated,  was  his 
warm  personal  and  political  friend,  and  two  weeks  after 
he  assumed  his  high  office,  he  appointed  Major  Stevens 
Governor  and  Commissioner  for  Indian  Affairs  of  Wash- 
ington Territory  :  at  the  same  time  he  was  placed  in  charge 
of  the  survey  of  the  northern  route  for  the  Pacific  Rail- 
road, and,  the  appointment  being  confirmed  by  the  Sen- 
ate, he  departed  for  Washington  Territory,  where  he 
entered  upon,  and  .continued  to  discharge,  his  duties 
as  Governor  and  Commissioner  throughout  President 
Pierce's  term  of  office. 

In  May,  1856,  a  serious  dispute  occurred  between  Gov. 
Stevens  and  Edward  Lander,  Chief  Justice  of  the  Terri- 


ISAAC   IXGALLS   STEVENS.  501 

tory,  and  brother  of  the  late  Gen.  Lander.  The  Governor 
declared  the  Territory  under  martial  law,  and,  on  May 
7th,  1856,  caused  Judge  Lander  to  be  arrested  in  his  court- 
room. The  Editor  has  not  been  able  to  obtain  the  his- 
tory of  this  conflict,  although  he  has  written  and  applied 
personally  to  several  old  citizens  of  California,  Oregon 
and  Washington  ;  but  it  is  probably  safe  to  assume  that 
the  conduct  of  Governor  Stevens  was  unjustifiable  or,  to 
say  the  least,  hasty,  inasmuch  as  it  was  disapproved,  upon 
investigation,  by  the  authorities  at  Washington. 

During  Mr.  Buchanan's  administration,  1857-1861, 
Gov.  Stevens  was  a  delegate  to  the  United  States  House 
of  Representatives,  from  Washington  Territory. 

Gov.  Stevens  was  author  of  '^  Campaigns  of  the  Rio 
Grande  and  Mexico,"  (8vo.,  New  York,  1851) — being  are- 
view  of  Ripley's  History  of  the  Mexican  War ;  also  of  a 
Report  of  Explorations  made  by  him  in  1853-54,  while 
Governor  of  Washington  Territory,  for  a  ''  Route  for  a 
Pacific  Railroad  near  the  47th  and  49th  parallels  of  north 
latitude,  from  St.  Paul,  Minnesota,  to  Puget  Sound,"  pub- 
lished by  order  of  Congress  in  1855. 

When  the  great  breach  occurred  in  the  Democratic 
ranks  in  1860,  Gov.  Stevens  became  one  of  the  most 
earnest  leaders  of  the  Breckinridge  wing  of  the  party, 
and  was  President  of  the  Breckinridge  National  Executive 
Committee.  He  acquiesced  in  the  election  of  Mr.  Lincoln, 
and  before  the  latter  was  inaugurated,  strongly  urged 
upon  Mr.  Buchanan  the  propriety  of  dismissing  Secreta- 
ries Floyd  and  Thompson  from  his  Cabinet.  At  the  time 
of  the  fall  of  Fort  Sumter  he  was  on  the  Pacific  coast, 
and  as  soon  as  he  heard  that  hostilities  were  commenced, 
he  hastened  to  Washington,  and  was  appointed  Colonel 
of  the  79th  New  York,  (Highlanders)  July  31st,  1861. 
From  that  time  until  October  21st,  1861,  Col.  Stevens 
served  in  the  defenses  of  Washington.  He  was  commis- 
sioned Brigadier-General  of  Volunteers,  September  28th, 
1861,  and  had  command  of  a  brigade  in  the  Port  Royal 
Expeditionary  Corps  from  October  21st,  1861,  to  March 
31st,  1862.  He  had  command  of  the  land  forces  which 
attacked  the  enemy  at  Port  Royal  Ferry,  and  captured  and 


502  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

destroyed  their  batteries  on  Coosaw  river,  South  Carolina. 
He  led  the  principal  column  in  the  unsuccessful  assault 
on  the  enemy's  position  near  Secessionville,  June  16th, 
1862.  From  March  31st,  to  July  12th,  1862,  Gen.  Stev- 
ens was  in  the  Department  of  the  South,  having  com- 
mand of  a  brigade  and  subsequently  of  a  division  ;  being 
engaged  in  the  demonstrations  and  actions  on  Stono  river, 
June  3d-10th. 

On  July  4th,  1862,  Gen.  Stevens  was  commissioned  a 
Major-General  of  Volunteers,  and  served  in  the  Northern 
Virginia  Campaign  ;  being  engaged  in  various  skirmishes 
on  the  Rappahannock  during  the  early  part  of  August ;  at 
the  battle  of  Manassas,  August  29th-30th  ;  and  at  the  bat- 
tle of  Chantilly,  where,  '^  while  leading  his  division  in  a 
charge,  he  was  killed,  September  1st,  1862,  aged  forty- 
four  years." 

Gen.  Stevens  was  not  a  statesman,  although  a  man  of 
varied  talents,  and  ambitious  of  civil  honors.  His  fame 
must  rest  upon  his  military  achievements.  His  life, 
though  not  long,  was  active  and  crowded  with  events. 
Stout  hearted,  high-spirited,  brave  and  resolute,  he  was 
admirably  adapted  to  the  profession  of  arms.  Whenever 
the  flag  of  his  country  waved  above  ''the  red  baptism  of 
the  battlefield,"  his  arm  was  prompt  to  strike,  and  his 
free  and  martial  spirit  followed  where  duty  called.  In 
early  manhood  and  in  middle  age,  within  his  country's 
borders  and  in  a  foreign  land,  he  displayed  on  many 
memorable  instances,  the  noblest  qualities  of  the  soldier 
and  hero.  It  was  the  wish  of  Stevens  that,  when  death 
sheathed  his  sword,  his  name  would  be  enrolled  upon  the 
shining  list  of  American  Generals  :  and  the  aspiration 
has  been  fully  realized. 


JUAN  BAUTISTA  ALVARADO. 


Go^t:rnor  Juan  Bautista  Alyarado  was  born  in  the 
city  of  Monterey,  the  then  capital  of  Alta  Cali- 
fornia, on  the  14th  day  of  February,  a.d.  1809.  His 
father  was  General  Don  Francisco  Alvaraclo,  chief  ad- 
viser and  Adjutant  General  of  the  Spanish  commander 
and  Governor  Don  Jose  Joaquin  de  Arrillaga,  then  Gov- 
ernor of  Lower  and  Alta  California;  and  his  grandfather 
was  the  renowned  General  Limon,  who  conquered  the 
States  of  Sonora,  Sinaloa,  and  Lower  California,  and  who 
made  himself  so  famous  on  account  of  the  great  interest 
he  manifested  towards  the  progress  and  advancement  of 
the  newly  acquired  Territories — which  fact  is  marked  in 
the  history  of  Spain. 

General  Don  Francisco  Alvarado,  father  of  Juan 
Bautista,  was  married  in  the  year  1808  to  Seiiorita  Josefa 
Vallejo,  daughter  of  General  Ignacio  Yallejo  and  sister 
of  General  Mariano  G.  Yallejo.  Don  Juan  Bautista  Al- 
varado was  the  only  issue  of  that  marriage.  His  father 
having  died  when  he  was  only  ten  days  old,  and  having 
left  no  property,  he  was  compelled  to  struggle  for  himself. 
He  early,  however,  found  a  friend  in  the  person  of  Don 
Pablo  Vicente  de  Sola,  then  Governor  of  California. 
Young  Alvarado  was  sent  to  school,  and  received  private 
lessons  and  instructions  from  Governor  Sola  himself  in 
his  private  residence,  the  Governor  having  taken  great 
interest  and  pains  to  promote  the  education  and  welfare 
of  his  protege,  young  Alvarado,  who,  when  but  twelve 
years  old,  had  shown  considerable  natural  abilities  and 


504  REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OF  THE  PACIFIC. 

rare  intellect  for  one  so  tender  in  years.  When  he  had 
attained  his  eighteenth  year,  he  had  already  acquired 
that  notoriety  and  prominence  which  is  so  characteristic 
in  a  new  country,  and  ranked  among  the  ablest  and  fore- 
most of  that  period. 

Before  attaining  his  nineteenth  year,  he  was  elected 
by  the  people's  vote  to  the  Secretaryship  of  the  Terri- 
torial Legislature.  Subsequently,  the  Legislature  con- 
ferred upon  him  the  appointment  of  treasurer  and  cus- 
todian of  the  public  funds  of  the  Territory,  with  full 
power  and  authority  to  invest  the  same  as  he  might 
judge  best  for  the  benefit  of  the  country. 

In  the  year  1826,  the- Mexican  Government  appointed 
him  chief  officer  of  the  Commissary  Departments  of 
Sonora,  Sinaloa,  and  California.  In  1833,  and  when  but 
twenty-four  years  of  age,  he  was  appointed  to  the  posi- 
tion of  Collector  of  the  Custom-house  at  Monterey. 

In  the  year  1836,  Governor  Alvarado  was  President 
of  the  Departmental  Assembly,  which  body  had  declared 
California  to  be  a  free,  sovereign,  and  independent  State, 
under  the  Constitution  of  1824,  overthrowing  Nicolas 
Gutierrez,  then  Governor  under  Mexico,  and  creating 
thereby  a  vacancy  in  the  gubernatorial  chair.  Governor 
Alvarado  being  then  President  of  the  Departmental  As- 
sembly, became  by  the  constitution  Governor  of  Cali- 
fornia ad  interim^  was  confirmed  as  such  by  the  Supreme 
Government,  and  subsequently,  as  will  be  seen,  by  the 
President  of  the  Republic  of  Mexico.  The  Constitution 
of  Mexico  provided  that  the  people  of  each  and  every 
Territory  represented  by  the  Departmental  Assembly 
should  recommend  three  citizens,  one  of  whom  should  be 
selected  and  receive  the  appointment  by  the  President 
of  the  Republic  of  Mexico  for  Governor  of  his  respective 
Territory.  The  Territory  of  Alta  California,  in  pursuance 
of  said  provision,  recommended  for  Governor  three  of 
its  most  distinguished  and  prominent  citizens,  namely: 
General  Mariano  Guadalupe  Yallejo,  General  Jose  An- 
tonio Carrillo,  and  Don  Juan  Bautista  Alvarado.  His 
Excellency  Don  Anastasio  Bustamente,  then  President 
of  the  Republic  of  Mexico,  selected  of  the  three  names 


JUAN   BAUTISTA  ALYARADO.  505 

thus  presented  to  him  for  the  highly  important  position 
of  Constitutional  Governor  of  Alta  California,  Don  Juan 
Bautista  Alvarado. 

In  the  year  1842,  the  native  Calif ornians  showed 
symptoms  of  discontent  and  dissatisfaction  with  the  ad- 
ministration of  the  then  President  of  Mexico,  General 
Santa  Anna;  who,  having  by  force  of  arms  overthrown 
the  constitutional  President  of  Mexico,  Anastasio  Busta- 
mente,  attempted  the  overthrow  of  the  republican  form 
of  government  and  the  establishment  of  a  monarchy. 
Governor  Alvarado  was  among  the  first  and  foremost  in 
repudiating  and  denouncing  the  illegal  course  adopted 
by  Santa  Anna;  and  assisted  by  his  uncle,  General  Mari- 
ano G.  Vallejo,  and  his  personal  friend,  General  Jose 
Castro,  initiated  revolutionary  steps,  raising  the  cry  of 
war  against  Santa  Anna  and  his  monarchical  coadjutors, 
seeking  at  all  hazards  to  maintain  and  uphold  the  repub- 
lican form  of  government  in  California. 

Santa  Anna,  upon  being  apprised  of  this  movement, 
headed  by  such  influential  men  as  Alvarado,  Yallejo,  and 
Castro,  and  anticipating  serious  results,  sent  post  haste 
his  confidential  and  personal  friend.  General  Manuel 
Micheltorena,  with  sufficient  forces  to  California,  in 
order  to  overthrow  and  defeat  the  leaders  of  such 
movement,  and  to  proclaim  Santa  Anna  Dictator  of 
Mexico.  The  Californians,  laboring  under  the  impression 
that  Micheltorena,  impelled  by  motives  of  friendship 
towards  them,  had  accepted  the  mission,  j)ermitted  him 
to  assume  the  reins  of  government,  and  he  was  Governor 
of  California  during  two  years.  All  this  while,  Michel- 
torena kept  concealed  from  the  knowledge  of  the  Cali- 
fornians the  true  and  sole  object  of  his  mission. 

The  Californians,  immediately  upon  discovering  the 
secret  plots  concocted  by  Santa  Anna  and  Micheltorena, 
armed  themselves;  and,  led  by  Governor  Alvarado,  Gen- 
eral Yallejo,  and  General  Castro,  overthrew  and  com- 
pletely routed  Micheltorena,  who  w^as  compelled  to  flee 
back  to  Mexico  for  safety. 

In  the  year  1845,  Don  Pio  Pico  was  appointed  Con- 
stitutional Governor  of  California.     In  1845,  Governor 


506  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF  THE   PACIFIC. 

Pico  conferred  upon  Governor  Alvarado  the  appointment 
of  Collector  of  the  Custom  House  at  Monterey,  which 
appointment  Governor  Alvarado  only  accepted  at  the 
urgent  solicitation  of  Governor  Pico  and  other  prominent 
citizens  and  friends,  and  for  the  second  time  held  that 
office  only  during  a  short  time. 

A  general  election  took  place  about  this  time  in 
California  for  the  purpose  of  electing  delegates  to  form 
a  convention  to  select  a  representative  to  the  Mexican 
Congress.  Gov.  Juan  B.  Alvarado  was  the  choice  of  the 
people,  and  was  elected  representative  to  the  Mexican 
Congress  from  California  by  an  overwhelming  majority. 

Gov.  Alvarado  being  about  to  depart  for  Mexico  to 
take  his  seat  in  Congress,  war  was  declared  between  the 
United  States  and  the  Republic  of  Mexico,  and  he  was 
prevented  from  proceeding  thither  in  consequence  of  all 
the  Mexican  ports  having  been  blockaded  by  the  United 
States  war  vessels. 

Matters  having  been  satisfactorily  arranged  between 
the  two  governments,  and  the  United  States  troops  hav- 
ing landed  and  taken  possession  of  California,  a  consult- 
ation took  place  between  Gov.  Pico,  General  Castro,  and 
Gov.  Alvarado,  as  to  the  course  to  be  pursued  at  that 
critical  moment.  The  two  former,  after  mature  delibera- 
tion, concluded  to  leave  the  country,  and  left  for  Mexico ; 
while  Gov.  Alvarado  decided  to  remain  friendly  towards 
the  United  States,  in  his  native  home.  He  was  placed 
under  parole,  and  removed  quietly,  and  without  partici- 
pating in  any  movement  against  the  United  States,  to  his 
present  home,  San  Pablo. 

General  Kearney,  the  Commander  in  Chief  of  the 
armies  of  the  United  States  in  California,  seeing  and  ap- 
preciating the  faithfulness  with  which  Gov.  Alvarado, 
notwithstanding  the  frequent  invitations  to  levy  war 
against  the  United  States,  kept  his  parole,  offered  and 
tendered  to  him  a  prominent  and  influential  position 
under  the  Government  of  the  United  States.  Governor 
Alvarado,  however,  declined  the  honor,  assigning  as  a 
reason  for  his  refusal,  that  he  was  a  paroled  officer,  and 
could  not  honorably,  and  while  owing  allegiance  to  the 


JUAN   BAUTISTA   ALYAEADO.  507 

Mexican  government,  accept  an  office  at  the  hands  of  the 
United  States  government ;  at  the  same  time  highly  ap- 
preciating and  thankfully  acknowledging  the  honor. 

Governor  Alvarado's  six  years  of  administration  as 
Governor  of  California  gave  unbounded  satisfaction  to 
the  Californians.  A  man  of  generous  and  extremely 
liberal  disposition,  courteous  and  affable,  always  prompt 
and  ready  to  render  assistance  to  the  needful,  al- 
ways acting  with  an  honesty  and  purity  of  purpose, 
perhaps  none  of  his  predecessors  ever  possessed  the 
hearts  of  his  people  in  so  great  a  measure  as  he.  He 
was  universally  esteemed  and  respected  by  all,  natives 
and  foreigners.  Upwards  of  four  hundred  Mexican  grants 
of  land  were  issued  in  California  by  him,  all  of  which 
have  been  more  or  less  confirmed  by  the  Government  of 
the  United  States.  As  the  head  of  administration  in 
California,  Governor  Alvarado  scattered  among  the  people 
the  commodities  of  justice,  liberty,  and  prosperity. 

The  most  remarkable  traits  in  the  character  of  Gov. 
Alvarado  during  his  administration  as  Governor  of  Alta 
California  were  his  utter  disregard  and  great  disinterest- 
edness towards  advancing  and  benefiting  his  pecuniary 
condition,  and  his  exceedingly  unostentatious  disposition. 

Since  1845,  though  repeatedly  asked  to  accept  public 
offices  and  trusts,  he  has  positively  declined  every  thing 
of  the  kind,  preferring  solitary  and  quiet  retirement  amid 
the  rural  shades  of  private  life. 

Governor  Alvarado  was  married,  in  the  year  1839,  to 
Seiiorita  Martina  Castro,  the  daughter  of  a  distinguished 
Californian,  Colonel  Don  Francisco  M.  Castro.  Nine 
children  have  been  born  to  them:  of  these,  three  have 
since  died,  and  six  are  living. 

The  Governor,  although  in  the  sixtieth  year  of  his 
age,  is  hearty  and  robust,  and  would  be  taken  for  a  toan 
of  forty-five  years  of  age  by  those  unacquainted  with 
him.  He  resides  at  present  with  his  family  in  his  rural 
mansion,  situated  in  the  village  of  San  Pablo,  in  Contra 
Costra  county,  where  he  has  dwelt  for  upwards  of  twenty 
years. 


THOMPSON  CAMPBELL 

By  Frank  f.   Baylor. 


ILLINOIS  can  claim  the  honor  of  having  been  more  pro- 
lific of  distinguished  men  during  the  last  decade  than 
any  other  State  of  the  Union.  Certainly,  from  no  other 
State  have  as  many  men,  conspicuous  for  signal  ability 
and  great  talent,  emigrated,  and  become  the  adopted  sons 
of  California. 

Thompson  Casipbell  was  one  of  those  whose  fame  was 
established  in  Illinois  before  California  attracted  the  at- 
tention of  the  American  people.  This  gentleman  was 
born  in  Pennsylvania,  in  the  year  1812.  In  that  State  he 
grew  up  to  manhood,  received  a  good  education  and 
studied  law.  Shortly  after  his  admission  to  the  bar,  he 
'removed  to  Galena,  in  Jo.  Daviess  County,  Illinois,  where, 
in  a  few  years,  he  became  famous  for  his  oratorical  pow- 
ers, and  where  he  acquired  great  distinction  as  a  crim- 
inal lawyer.  From  1838  to  1853  he  practiced  at  a  bar 
which  numbered  among  its  members  many  able  men — 
Hon.  E.  B.  "VVashburne,  present  Minister  to  Trance,  Hon. 
Thos.  Drummond,  present  U.  S.  Circuit  Judge  of  Illinois, 
and  others  (who  have  since  become  noted  in  California) 
prominent  among  whom  are  Hons.  J.  P.  Hoge,  0.  C. 
Pratt,  and  S.  M.  Wilson. 

In  1840,  Mr.  Campbell  was  appointed  by  Gov.  Ford 
of  Illinois,  Secretary  of  State,  and  acted  in  that  capacity 
for  one  term.  In  1846,  he  was  elected  a  delegate  to  the 
convention  called  to  amend  the  Constitution  of  his  State. 
He  took  a  leading  part  in  the  deliberations  of  that  body. 
In  1850,  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  National  House  of 


510  REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OF  THE   PACIFIC. 

Representatives,  to  succeed  Hon.  E.  D.  Baker.  At  the 
expiration  of  his  term,  in  the  spring  of  1853,  he  was  ap- 
pointed by  President  Pierce  U.  S.  Land  Commissioner 
for  the  State  of  California,  and  immediately  thereafter 
removed  with  his  family  to  San  Francisco.  He  did  not 
long  discharge  the  duties  of  this  position,  but  resigned  in 
order  to  practice  his  profession  in  the  new  and  inviting 
field  which  San  Francisco  then  presented. 

He  achieved  marked  success  in  the  practice  of  law, 
and  maintained  the  high  reputation  he  had  won  in  Illi- 
nois. He  returned  to  the  latter  State  in  1859,  and  re- 
sided in  Chicago  for  about  two  years.  He  was  warmly 
■\velcomed  on  his  return  to  Illinois  by  numerous  personal 
friends ;  and  the  Democracy,  then  about  to  divide  into 
two  hostile  factions,  watched  his  course  with  anxious  in- 
terest. He  was  not  long  in  deciding  under  which  standard 
he  would  march,  but  espousing  the  cause  of  the  weaker 
branch,  threw  the  great  weight  of  his  name  and  influence 
against  the  ''Little  Giant." 

In  the  campaign  of  1860  he  was  one  of  the  Breckin- 
ridge Presidential  electors.  Soon  after  the  result  of  that 
contest  was  known,  Mr.  Campbell  made  a  tour  through 
Europe,  after  which  he  returned  to  San  Francisco,  and 
resumed  legal  practice.  A  man  of  his  temperament  and 
patriotism  could  not  be  silent  while  the  war  of  the  rebel- 
lion was  raging.  At  the  outbreak  of  that  struggle  he 
promptly  and  enthusiastically  gave  his  support  to  the 
Union  cause,  and  throughout  its  continuance  he  advo- 
cated, on  every  proper  occasion,  the  principles  of  the 
Union  party,  and  labored  for  their  vindication  with  una- 
bated zeal.  Mr.  Campbell  had  been  a  life-long  Demo- 
crat ;  and  suddenly  to  sever  his  connection  with  his  party 
must  have  cost  him  much  painful  effort:  but,  possessed 
of  a  bold,  comprehensive  mind;  of  patriotic  impulses^ 
which  made  him  disregard  the  ungenerous  and  sometimes 
severe  criticisms  of  his  old  partisan  friends,  he  was  un- 
daunted, and  strode  like  a  giant  into  the  conflict  with 
those  who  advocated  the  cause  of  disunion. 

In  1863,  he  delivered  a  speech  on  the  condition  of 
public  affairs,  which  was  a  meritorious  and  masterly  effort, 


THOMPSON   CAMPBELL.  511 

and  caused  many  hearty  congratulations  throughout  the 
State,  that  the  Union  cause  had  in  California  so  fearless, 
earnest,  and  eloquent  a  champion.  So  widely  did  his 
fame  as  an  orator  and  a  thinker  extend,  and  so  eagerly  were 
his  counsels  sought,  that  in  July,  1863,  the  proprietors 
of  the  Sacramento  Union  proposed  to  him  that,  if  he  would 
visit  Sacramento  and  there  deliver  a  speech  on  the  state 
of  the  country,  they  would,  at  their  own  expense  have  it 
reported  stenographically,  and  printed  in  full  in  the  col- 
umns of  their  popular  journal.  This  offer  was  accepted, 
and  in  the  month  named,  Mr.  Campbell  made  one  of  his 
ablest  and  most  convincing  speeches,  in  the  Assembly 
chamber  of  the  Capitol.  Although  he  possessed  the  rare 
and  happy  faculty  of  readily  extemporizing  as  well,  yet  tliis 
particular  effort  was  evidently  the  result  of  careful  and 
thorough  preparation.  The  gubernatorial  canvass  was  then 
progressing  with  great  animation :  Hon.  F.  F.  Low  being 
the  Union,  and  Hon.  J.  G.  Downey  the  Democratic  can- 
didate. On  the  occasion  just  referred  to,  Mr.  Campbell, 
owing  to  a  misapprehension  as  to  time,  commenced  his 
speech  at  8.45  o'clock,  P.  M.,  and  closed  at  12.30,  A.  M., 
consuming  three  and  three-quarters  hours  of  time.  Being 
then  in  bad  health,  it  was  a  subject  of  common  surprise 
that  he  could  s|>eak,  with  voice  clear  and  unbroken,  for 
so  long  a  time.  His  speech  was  printed  in  full  in  the 
Union^  occupying  nearly  nine  columns  of  that  paper.  The 
State  Central  Committee  ordered  10,000  copies  to  be  print- 
ed in  pamphlet  form,  but  soon  raised  the  number  to  50,- 
000,  for  general  circulation.  It  was  widely  circulated  and 
received  as  a  text-book  of  the  party,  and  as  the  most  able, 
instructive  and  exhaustive  argument  that  had  been  or 
could  be  made  on  the  subject  upon  which  it  treated.  It 
was  generally  agreed  that  the  decisive  victory  soon  after- 
wards achieved  by  the  Union  party  in  California,  was  ow- 
ing as  much  to  the  efforts  of  Mr.  Campbell  as  to  those  of 
any  other  leader  of  the  party  in  the  State. 

A  few  weeks  after  the  delivery  of  the  speech  of  wdiich 
mention  has  just  been  made,  Mr.  Campbell  was  nominated 
as  a  candidate  for  the  Assembly  by  his  party  in  San  Fran- 
cisco.   He  was  elected ;  and  when  the  Legislature  convened 


512  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

in  December,  1863,  he  was  made  chairman  of  the  Judiciary 
Committee  of  the  lower  house.  His  influence  in  that  com- 
mittee and  in  the  Assembly  chamber  was  remarkable,  and 
equaled,  if  it  did  not  surpass,  that  of  any  man  who  has  ever 
held  a  seat  in  the  California  Legislature. 

During  that  session  of  the  Legislature  the  representa- 
tives of  the  Union  party  met  at  Sacramento  in  State  con- 
vention, to  choose  delegates  to  the  national  convention 
at  Baltimore,  called  to  nominate  candidates  for  President 
and  Vice  President  of  the  United  States.  Mr.  Campbell 
received  the  highest  number  of  votes  cast  for  any  dele- 
gate except  Gen.  Bidwell.  His  appearance  on  the  plat- 
form, and  his  speech  on  that  occasion,  elicited  enthusiastic 
demonstrations  of  applause.  It  will  be  remembered  that  the 
excitement  produced  by  the  war  then  raging  was  intense. 
One  of  the  principal  subjects  of  public  discussion  through- 
out the  State  was  the  declaration  contained  in  the  resolu- 
tions passed  by  the  Union  convention,  that  the  volunteer 
soldiers  were  entitled  to  vote  at  the  general  election  in  Cal- 
ifornia, although  they  happened  to  be  without  the  bound- 
aries of  the  State  at  the  time.  Addressing  himself  to  this 
topic,  Mr.  Campbell  electrified  the  convention  with  a 
speech  at  once  argumentative  and  eloquent.  He  seemed 
to  be  in  his  happiest  vein.  The  magnificence  of  his  style, 
the  beauty  and  finish  of  his  periods,  the  perfect  harmony 
existing  between  his  own  feelings  and  the  general  senti- 
ment of  his  party,  the  vast  and  appreciative  audience,  and 
the  impassioned  mood  of  the  speaker,  all  joined  to  height- 
en the  effect  of  this  splendid  effort.  He  spoke  of  the 
lofty  valor,  heroism  and  unfaltering  devotion  of  the  Union 
soldiers,  "which  would  hereafter  render  their  posterity 
more  proud  of  them  than  if  they  had  sprung  from  a  race  of 
kings,"  and  that  'Svewill  send  the  ballot,  if  necessary,  round 
about  the  pendant  globe,  but  what  it  shall  reach  them." 

Soon  afterwards,  Mr.  Campbell  departed  for  Balti- 
more, and  participated  in  the  proceedings  of  the  con- 
vention which  renominated  Abraham  Lincoln  for  the 
Presidency. 

Returning  to  San  Francisco,  in  June,  1865,  he  ad- 
dressed a  public  meeting  in  that  city,  on  the  question  of 


THOMPSON   CAMPBELL.  513 

Mexican  independence,  sternly  denouncing  the  usurpa- 
tion of  Maximilian  J  and  advocating  with  great  zeal  the 
application  of  the  ''Monroe  Doctrine"  in  our  relations 
with  that  country.  He  was  always  earnestly  in  favor  of 
the  introduction  of  the  national  currency  into  California. 

His  political  sagacity  was  remarkable.  In  the  spring 
of  1865,  on  his  return  from  the  Atlantic  States,  he  told 
his  party  friends  plainly  and  emphatically  that  the  elect- 
ive franchise  must  and  would  be  extended  to  all  the  ne- 
groes in  the  States  which  had  engaged  in  the  Rebellion, 
for  the  simple  reason  that  that  class  of  the  population 
could  protect  themselves  in  no  other  way  than  by  the 
ballot.  He  astounded  many  of  those  to  whom  he  thus 
spoke,  and  but  few  agreed  with  him  until  the  rapid  suc- 
cession of  events  attested  his  foresight. 

Mr.  Campbell  died,  after  a  short  illness,  in  San  Fran- 
cisco, leaving  a  widow,  son  and  daughter,  who  have  since 
returned  to  the  East.  Owing  in  a  great  degree  to  his 
disease,  he  lacked,  in  his  latter  years,  that  suavity  and 
genial  temper  which  were  among  the  most  attractive -char- 
acteristics of  his  early  manhood. 

In  former  years  he  had  great  vivacity  and  personal 
magnetism,  and  delighted  his  hearers  with  entertaining 
conversations  and  amusing  anecdotes.  He  sought  no  indi- 
vidual alliances  or  support;  and  yet  such  was  his  great  pow- 
er, aided  by  the  prestige  of  his  former  achievements,  that 
his  influence  was  almost  unbounded.  Until  the  last  two 
days  of  the  term,  not  a  bill  or  law  was  rejected  which  was 
introduced  or  advocated  by  him,  and  his  frown  was  fatal 
to  every  measure  which  he  opposed.  This  is  stated  not 
as  mere  flattery  or  even  eulogy,  but  as  an  instance  of  the 
extent  of  the  influence  which  one  legislator,  noted  for  his 
integrity,  wisdom,  and  eloquence  could  exert  over  his 
fellows. 

During  the  year  1867,  he  several  times  addressed  the 
people  of  San  Francisco  on  the  interesting  subject  of 
what  is  known  as  ''the  outside  lands,"  in  which  he  be- 
came involved  in  an  exciting  controversy  with  Mr.  Con- 
ness,  then  a  U.  S.  Senator  from  California;  also,  in  the 
gubernatorial  canvass  of  that  year,  in  which  he  closed  a 
33 


514  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

masterly  speech,  by  saying  that,  '^he  should  support  Mr. 
Gorham  OYi patriotic  grounds,  and  none  other." 

As  an  orator,  in  particular,  it  is  most  difficult  to  do 
justice  to  Mr.  Campbell ;  only  those  who  have  seen  him 
in  the  various  moods  of  passion  and  thought,  which  lit  up 
his  classic  countenance  as  with  a  flame  of  light ;  who  have 
heard  the  sweet,  deep-sounding  cadences  of  his  voice, 
and  witnessed,  in  his  great  earnestness,  his  grand  and 
magnificent  gesticulation,  who  have  listened  to  his  pro- 
found arguments,  and  witnessed  the  effect  of  his  glowing 
words,  the  winged  messengers  of  his  enthusiastic  soul, 
can  fully  comprehend  the  inadequacy  of  any  description 
of  his  character. 

Well  was  he  described  by  a  leading  political  paper  of 
California,  in  January,  1864,  as  "That  just  less  than  sov- 
ereign intelligence  Thompson  Campbell." 

In  the  death  of  Mr.  Campbell,  an  estimable  and  devot- 
ed wife,  and  an  interesting  daughter  and  son,  of  mature 
years,  lost  a  loving,  tender,  and  affectionate  husband  and 
father,  whose  fame  and  public  virtues  threw  around  them 
the  protective  glory  and  shield  of  an  honored  and  great 
name.  California  lost  a  noble  son,  w^ho  had  reflected 
honor  upon  her  escutcheon.  His  circle  of  admiring 
friends  lost  in  him  a  friend  indeed,  and  the  bar  and 
public  forum  were  deprived  of  one  of  the  most  brilliant 
of  geniuses  and  most  profound  of  intellects. 

The  following  extract  from  the  obituary  notice  of  Mr. 
Campbell  which  appeared  in  the  San  Francisco  Evening 
Bulletin^  on  the  day  after  his  death,  will  fitly  conclude  this 
brief  and  imperfect  sketch. 

Mr.  Campbell's  voice  has  often  been  heard  in  the  discussion  of 
public  affairs,  and  always  on  the  side  of  liberal  principles.  None 
who  ever  heard  him  will  forget  his  pale  face,  set  in  a  frame  of  long 
dark  hair,  his  glowing  eyes,  his  nervous  energy  of  gesture,  his  half- 
absorbed  yet  electrical  manner,  his  compact  logic,  his  faultlessly 
correct  and  felicitous  language,  rising  often  to  a  natural  eloquence, 
and  his  fervid  expressions  of  patriotic  sentiment.  At  the  bar  he 
was  especially  distinguished  for  closeness  of  logic  and  clearness  of 
analysis.  These  qualities,  and  his  command  ovey  the  attention  of 
a  jury,  were  remarkably  displayed  in  a  late  important  land  case  in 
San  Francisco. 


^ 


'-y*'  or  Tiis      -^ 

[U5I7Br.  ilTT] 


^'^Sraredt.J.c  Burt..,  from  ^  Sag^-^^'^ 


JOHN  B.  WELLER 

By  the  -p^DiTOi^     - 


THIS  gentleman,  for  many  years  a  prominent  public 
man  in  California,  and  the  fourth  Governor  of  the 
State,  was  born  on  the  22d  day  of  February,  1812.  His 
parents  were  of  German  descent,  and  natives  of  the  State 
of  New  York.'  They  moved  from  the  county  of  Orange, 
in  that  State,  to  Ohio,  about  the  year  1810,  and  settled  in 
Hamilton  county,  some  twelve  mites  from  Cincinnati. 
There,  in  the  village. of  Montgomery,  John  B.  Weller  was 
born. 

When  he  was  twelve  or  fourteen  years  old,  his  parents 
removed  to  Oxford,  Butler  county,  the  seat  of  Miami 
University.  At  this  institution,  John  B.  was  educated. 
Immediately  upon  the  completion  of  his  studies  at  college, 
he  became  a  pupil,  in  the  study  of  law,  of  Jesse  Corwin, 
brother  of  Hon.  Tom  Corwin,  whose  name  is  so  familiar 
to  the  people  of  the  entire  Union.  Jesse  Corwin' s  office 
and  residence  were  at  Hamilton,  the  county-seat  of  Butler 
county.  In  that  town,  John  prosecuted  his  legal  studies 
until  his  friend  and  preceptor  considered  him  qualified  to 
enter  upon  the  practice  of  law,  when  he  was  admitted  to 
the  bar  before  he  had  attained  his  majority. 

He  had  been  practicing  his  profession  but  a  short  time, 
when  the  Democratic  County  Convention  of  Butler  county 
nominated  him  for  Prosecuting  Attorney.  His  opponent, 
the  Whig  candidate,   was  his  old  tutor,  J^sse  Corwin, 


516  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

whom  he  defeated  by  a  large  majority.  About  this  time, 
he  was  married  to  Miss  Ryan,  a  daughter  of  the  leading 
merchant  of  Hamilton 

In  1838,  he  was  elected  by  the  Democracy  of  his 
district  to  the  lower  house  of  Congress,  representing  the 
counties  of  Butler,  Preble,  and  Darke — these  counties 
constituting  what  was  then  the  second  Congressional 
District  of  Ohio.  His  readiness  in  debate,  and  his  orator- 
ical powers,  which  were  considerable,  immediately  gave 
him  prominence  on  the  floor  of  Congress.  He  was  con- 
spicuous in  nearly  every  important  partizan  struggle 
witnessed  in  the  House  of  Representatives  during  his 
service  as  a  member.  His  bearing,  while  the  celebrated 
New  Jersey  contested  election  case  was  convulsing  the 
House,  attracted  to  him  the  attention  of  the  Democratic 
leaders,  who  esteemed  him  as  one  of  the  most  effective 
champions  of  Democratic  principles.  When  he  addressed 
the  House,  attentive  auditors  from  both  parties  were 
always  eager  to  give  due  consideration  to  his  earnest  yet 
sober  utterances.  He  was  twice  reelected  to  the  House 
of  Representatives,  on  both  occasions  having  for  his  com- 
petitor the  Whig  candidate,  Hon.  Lewis  D.  Campbell, 
who,  in  later  years,  represented  the  same  district  in  Con- 
gress. 

Having  lost  his  first  wife  a  few  years  after  his  marriage, 
Mr.  Weller,  during  his  first  term  in  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives, married  Miss  Bryan,  daughter  of  John  A. 
Bryan,  then  Auditor  of  the  State  of  Ohio.  This,  lady 
was  a  sister  of  Hon.  Charles  H.  Bryan,  formerly  Judge 
of  the  Supreme  Court  of  California,  by  appointment  of 
Gov.  Bigler.  Two  years  had  barely  elapsed,  when  Mr. 
Weller  suffered  a  new  affliction  in  the  death  of  his  second 
wife.  Near  the  close  of  his  third  term  in  Congress, 
(1845)  he  married  Miss  Susan  McDowell  Taylor,  daughter 
of  Hon.  William  Taylor,  then  a  congressman  from  Vir- 
ginia, and  a  niece  of  Col.  Thomas  H.  Benton. 

Mr.  Weller,  when  his  third  term  as  a  representative 
had  expired,  determined  to  resume  the  practice  of  law. 
His  party  desired  to  continue  him  in  Congress,  and  ten- 
dered him   the  nomination  again,  but  he  declined,  and 


JOHN    B.    WELLER.  51 7 

devoted  himself  to  his  profession,  until  the  war  broke 
out  between  this  country  and  Mexico.  Then  he  left  his 
business  to  others,  and  volunteered  as  a  private.  He 
was  chosen  captain  of  his  company,  which  became  a  part 
of  the  First  Ohio  regiment,  and  afterwards  he  was  elected 
lieutenant  colonel  of  this  regiment — 0.  M.  Mitchell  be- 
ing colonel.  He  distinguished  himself  for  his  gallantry 
at  Monterey,  and  when  Colonel  Mitchell  was  wounded 
and  disabled.  Col.  Weller  commanded  his  regiment  in  the 
hottest  part  of  the  fight. 

At  the  termination  of  the  war,  he  returned  to  his  home 
in  Ohio,  and  resumed  the  practice  of  law.  He  was  not 
long  allowed  the  comforts  of  private  life.  In  1848,  he 
was  nominated  by  his  party  as  their  candidate  for  Gov- 
ernor. The  Whig  candidate  was  Seabury  Ford.  The 
memorable  struggle  between  these  two  men  was  the 
most  bitter  and  animated  political  contest  that  ever  dis- 
turbed the  public  mind  in  the  Buckeye  State.  Colonel 
Weller,  then  in  the  very  prime  of  life,  possessed  of  a 
robust  constitution  and  excellent,  untiring  speaking 
abilities,  opened  the  campaign  at  an  early  day,  and 
throughout  its  continuance  bent  his  whole  strength  to 
the  attainment  of  success.  The  great,  main  purpose  of 
the  Democracy  was  to  secure  the  vote  of  the  State  for 
Gen.  Cass  at  the  approaching  presidential  election.  If 
Col.  Weller  should  be  elected  Governor,  it  would  follow 
as  almost  beyond  doubt  that  Ohio  would  cast  her  vote 
for  Gen.  Cass  in  the  fall  election.  Col.  AVeller  fully  ap- 
preciated the  importance  of  the  position  he  occupied, 
and  the  great  responsibilities  resting  upon  him.  The 
office  for  which  he  was  nominated  was  not  a  desirable 
one,  so  far  as  its  emoluments  were  concerned,  twelve 
hundred  dollars  ($1200)  per  annum  being  the  salary  at- 
tached to  it.  The  candidate  was  fighting  for  his  party, 
and  looking  to  a  national  victory.  He  made  speeches  in 
seventy- eight  counties  of  Ohio.  He,  at  no  time,  relaxed 
his  exertions,  nor  faltered  in  his  great  work  until  the 
campaign  closed.  He  took  the  bold  stand,  everywhere, 
that  if  he  were  elected  by  votes  of  those  who  endorsed 
the  principles  of  the  new  Abolition  organization,  and  the 


518  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

fact  could  be  determined,  he  would  not  accept  the  ofiSce. 
The  prejudice  at  that  time  against  Abolitionists  was  gen- 
eral among  conservative  men  who  acknowledged  allegiance 
to  no  political  organization,  and  pervaded  the  entire  Dem- 
ocratic party. 

The  campaign  ended  amid  intense  excitement,  which 
extended  not  only  throughout  Ohio  but  the  whole  country, 
which  awaited  the  issue  anxiously.  For  weeks  after  the 
election,  the  result  continued  in  doubt:  the  race  was  so 
closely  contested  that  the  official  count  was  required  to 
definitely  settle  the  question  of  who  was  the  people's 
choice  for  Governor.  In  an  aggregate  vote  of  nearly 
th^ee  hundred  thousand^  Seabury  Ford  was  declared  elected 
by  a  majority  of  three  hundred  and  forty-five.  In  one 
county,  however,  more  than  four  hundred  votes  had  been 
cast  for  John  Weller,  which  were  of  course  intended  for 
the  Democratic  candidate,  as  there  was  no  man  of  the 
name  of  JoAti  Weller  before  the  people;  and  the  Demo- 
cratic committee  of  that  county  having  omitted  the 
middle  initial  of  their  candidate's  name  in  making  up 
the  ticket  for  the  voters  of  that  county,  Col.  Weller  lost 
the  office  for  which,  not  only  on  his  own  account,  but  for 
the  interests  of  his  party,  he  had  made  so  determined 
and  gallant  a  fight.  The  great  end  was  nevertheless  at- 
tained. At  the  presidential  election  which  followed,  the 
electoral  vote  of  Ohio  was  cast  for  Gen.  Cass. 

In  January,  1849,  President  Polk  tendered  Col.  Wel- 
ler the  appointment  of  Commissioner,  under  the  Treaty 
of  Guadalupe  Hidalgo,  to  run  the  boundary  line  between 
the  United  States  and  Mexico.  He  accepted  the  appoint- 
ment. Having,  a  month  previous,  for  the  third  time 
laid  in  the  grave  the  chosen  and  beloved  companion  who 
had  augmented  his  pleasures  and  lessened  his  anxieties, 
his  mental  condition  was  such  as  to  render  new  scenes 
and  a  change  of  pursuit  particularly  inviting.  With  a 
force  of  thirty  men,  he  left  New  Orleans,  a  month  after 
his  appointment,  and  came  to  the  Pacific  coast  by  wa}^ 
of  the  Isthmus  of  Panama,  arrivmg  at  San  Diego  m  June. 
He  proceeded  at  once,  with  the  Mexican  Commissioner, 
to  fix  the  initial  point.     He  had  barely  completed  this 


JOHN   B.    WELLER.  519 

portion  of  the  work  when  he  was  recalled  by  the  new 
administration.  G-en.  Taylor,  very  soon  after  his  inaug- 
uration, (March  4th,  1849)  appointed  John  C.  Fremont  to 
supersede  Col.  Weller.  The  new  appointee,  however, 
did  not  enter  upon  his  duties,  being  engaged  in  pressing 
his  claims  to  an  election  to  the  United  States  Senate,  in 
which  he  was  successful.  Major  Emory,  the  topographi- 
cal engineer  of  the  commission,  prosecuted  the  work  until 
the  arrival  of  Mr.  Bartlett,  Gen.  Taylor's  second  ap- 
pointee. 

By  way  of  excuse  for  removing  Col.  Weller,  he  was 
accused  of  being  a  defaulter,  before  he  had  any  oppor- 
tunity to  settle  his  accounts.  The  charge,  started  by  the 
then  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  Thomas  Ewing,  was  re- 
peated in  the  United  States  Senate  by  Truman  Smith,  of 
Connecticut.  Afterwards,  from  his  seat  as  a  senator  from 
California,  Col.  Weller  had  the  gratifying  opportunity  of 
vindicating  himself  and  demonstrating  the  utter  falsity 
of  the  accusation.  Scarcely  two  months  had  passed 
since  this  charge  was  vso  boldly  made,  when  a  settlement 
with  the  government  showed  a  balance  of  several  thous- 
ands of  dollars  in  favor  of  Col.  Weller,  which  was  paid 
him  upon  his  arrival  at  Washington  to  take  his  place  in 
the  United  States  Senate. 

The  Legislature  of  1851-2  elected  Col.  Weller  to  the 
United  States  Senate,  to  succeed  John  C.  Fremont.  He 
took  his  seat  early  in  1852.  In  the  following  session  he 
was  made  Chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Military  Affairs, 
and  served  as  such  during  the  remainder  of  his  term. 

The  Legislature  of  California  which  convened  in 
January,  1857,  was  called  upon  to  elect  two  United 
States  senators,  one  for  the  term  of  four  years,  to  succeed 
Dr.  Gwin,  and  one  for  the  full  period  of  six  years,  to 
succeed  Col.  Weller,  whose  term  of  office  expired  on  the 
4th  of  March  following.  The  latter  gentleman  was  a 
candidate  for  reelection,  but  instead  of  returning  home 
to  prosecute  his  claims,  remained  at  his  post  at  Washing- 
ton— preferring  the  consciousness  of  duty  faithfully  per- 
formed to  success  at  the  price  of  neglect  of  public  trust. 
The  result  was  his  defeat  by  David  C.  Broderick,  who 


520  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OP   THE   PACIFIC. 

received  a  small  majority  of  votes  in  the  Democratic 
caucus — Dr.  Gwin  being  afterwards  chosen  as  his  own 
successor. 

Upon  the  arrival  of  Mr.  Broderick,  Col.  Weller  re- 
turned to  California.  Arriving  at  San  Francisco,  he  was 
met  at  the  wharf  by  the  leading  members  of  the  Demo- 
cratic party,  who  desired  his  continuance  in  public  life. 
He  wished  to  withdraw  from  the  field  of  politics,  and  at 
first  refused  to  become  a  candidate  for  Governor.  The 
unanimity  with  which  his  party  demanded  his  nomination 
for  that  ofiice  attested  his  great  popularity  throughout 
the  State,  and  induced  him  to  accept.  His  nomination 
was  tendered  almost  unanimously,  and  he  was  elected 
by  an  unusually  large  majority  over  Edward  Stanly,  Re- 
publican, and  G.  W.  Bowie,  American,  or  Know-Nothing. 
He  was  inaugurated  in  the  first  week  in  January,  1858, 
and  held  the  ofiice  for  the  term  of  two  years,  when  he 
was  succeeded  by  Milton  S.  Latham. 

Gov.  Weller,  upon  leaving  the  office  of  Governor, 
retired  to  his  country  seat  in  Alameda  county,  with  his 
family,  having  in  1854  married  his  fourth  wife.  'He 
wished  and  expected  to  enjoy  in  his  quiet  and  beautiful 
retreat  the  sweets  of  private  life  and  agricultural  pursuits 
the  remainder  of  his  days.  In  less  than  six  months, 
however,  he  was  on  his  way  to  the  city  of  Mexico,  as 
Minister  Plenipotentiary  to  the  Mexican  Republic,  by 
appointment  of  President  Buchanan.  He  was  recalled 
in  the  first  month  of  Mr.  Lincoln's  administration,  Hon. 
Tom  Corwin  succeeding  him.  He  then  returned  to  his 
farm,  and  devoted  himself  to  its  proper  cultivation  and 
adornment  for  a  few  years.  At  the  height  of  the  excite- 
ment consequent  upon  the  discovery  of  rich  silver  de- 
posits at  Reese  river,  Nevada,  he  was  tempted  to  visit  the 
new  mines,  in  the  effort  to  better  his  condition  pecuniar- 
ily. He  remained  there  only  a  few  months,  and  met  with 
no  success  worthy  of  mention.  He  had,  however,  al- 
though advanced  in  life,  become  imbued  with  a  love  of 
mining  and  the  adventures  and  excitements  attending 
life  in  the  mines. 

Returning  home,  and  making  proper  disposition  of 


JOHN    B.    WELLER.  521 

his  family,  he  prepared  himself  for  an  extended  ''  pros- 
pecting" tour.  He  proceeded  to  Oregon,  thence  to  Idaho, 
and  afterwards  through  Idaho  and  Utah  Territories  to 
Great  Salt  Lake  city.  In  the  '*  City  of  the  Saints,"  he 
practiced  law  for  several  months.  Becoming  employed 
in  a  murder  case  which  compelled  him  to  prosecute  and 
denounce  certain  of  the  Mormons  who  were  implicated 
in  the  murder,  his  course  excited  the  open  hatred  of  the 
^'Saints,"  who  marked  him  as  one  of  the  future  victims 
of  the  ''Destroying  Angel."  He  concluded,  very  sens- 
ibly, to  resume  his  travels.  He  returned  to  the  Eastern 
States,  and  sojourned  for  a  while  in  Washington  city. 

In  the  spring  of  1867,  he  visited  New  Orleans;  and 
falling  in  love  with  the  climate,  pleased  with  the  business 
prospects,  and  having  faith  in  the  future  of  that  beautiful 
city,  he  determined  to  make  it  his  home.  He  is  now 
actively  engaged  at  that  place  in  the  practice  of  his  pro- 
fession. 

During  his  long  public  career,  Col.  Weller  has  ever 
maintained  his  popularity  with  his  constituents,  and  his 
reputation  for  fidelity  and  honesty.  Although  he  has 
always  led  a  life  of  frugality,  he  has  never  accumulated 
wealth.  As  a  senator  of  the  United  States  from  Cali- 
fornia, and  as  Governor  of  the  State,  his  conduct  was 
distinguished  by  unflagging  devotion  to  the  interests  of 
the  Pacific  coast.  He  is  yet  in  the  full  possession  of  his 
powers,  and  his  old  constituents  wish  him  many  years  of 
happiness  as  the  reward  of  his  public  labors. 


'A^^  or  Tas       ^ 


'"^$  *  ty  OeoE-PerBa"^ - 


HON.  CORNELIUS   COLE 
SEKATORFROM  CALIFORNIA. 


CORNELIUS   COLE 


CORNELIUS  Cole  was  born  at  Lodi,  Seneca  County,  New 
York,  September  l7th,  1822,  the  seventh  of  twelve 
children.  His  paternal  ancestors  were  natives  of  New 
Jersey,  of  English  origin,  mingled  in  marriage  with  the 
German  family  of  Yan  Zant.  His  maternal  ancestors 
were  also  English,  named  Townsend,  joined  in  marriage 
with  the  family  of  Ganong.  As  the  time  of  the  arrival  of 
any  is  at  present  unknown,  all  must  have  come  to  Amer- 
ica at  an  early  date.  They  were  generally  farmers  and 
thrifty  citizens,  the  later  generations  residing  near  Towns- 
endville,  New  York,  a  small  village  named  for  his  grand- 
father, its  first  settler.  A  few  months  later  followed  his 
maternal  grandfather,  who  settled  near  by,  and  here  these 
sturdy  pioneers  battled  with  adversity  in  the  wilds  of 
their  forest  home,  conquering  all  opposition  by  the  same 
indomitable  perseverance  and  earnest  effort  that  have 
characterized  their  descendants,  and  especially  the  subject 
of  this  sketch.  Here  was  passed  the  latter's  earlier  years, 
though  surrounded  by  scenes  very  different  from  those 
with  which  his  ancestors  had  been  familiar  ;  the  howls  of 
wolves  had  given  place  to  the  ''church-going  bell,"  the 
gloomy  savage  and  the  wandering  hunter  had  been 
changed  as  by  a  magician's  wand,  into  a  circle  of  society, 
justly  celebrated  then,  and  pleasantly  remembered  for 
its  purity,  intelligence,  and  excellence.  Not  nursed  in 
the  lap  of  wealth,  nor  yet  pinched  by  poverty,  his  sum- 
mers were  spent  in  assisting  his  father  in  the  labors  of 
the  farm,  and  his  winters  in  attendance  upon  the  district 
school,  where  he  was  early  distinguished  for  his  profici- 


524  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

ency  in  mathematics.  Later  winters  were  devoted  to 
teaching  school  in  neighboring  districts,  and  thus  in  part 
he  earned  the  means  to  complete  a  classical  education,  upon 
which  he  had  long  been  determined.  A  limited  practice 
in  the  art  of  surveying  also  aided  him  somewhat  in  his 
efforts  at  self-reliance.  For,  to  his  credit  be  it  said,  his 
desire  to  help  himself,  and  thus  allow  the  resources  of  his 
father  to  extend  to  the  education  of  his  younger  sisters, 
was  the  motive  power  of  his  actions,  rather  thrai  the  pres- 
ent inability  of  his  father's  means  to  supply  him.  His 
first  winter  away  at  school  w^as  spent  in  the  Academy,  at 
Ovid,  Seneca  county,  whence,  though  some  seven  miles 
from  home,  his  drafts  for  board,  though  not  the  lightest, 
were  always  duly  and  promptly  honored  ;  not  on  some 
bank,  but  upon  his  mother's  well  stocked  cellar  ;  as  for 
the  sake  of  economy,  he  ''boarded  himself,"  as  the  phrase 
goes.  Vividly  does  the  writer  remember  the  Monday 
mornings,  when  about  to  leave  for  school,  the  worthy  ma- 
tron would  insist  on  absolutely  loading  the  sleigh  with 
stores  of  solid  viands,  regardless  of  her  son's  smiling  re- 
monstrances, and  the  last  article  was  generally  a  few  mince 
pies,  or  a  basket  of  apples.  And  well  does  he  remember 
the  glow  of  love  and  pride  that  flushed  the  broad  brow 
of  the  mother,  and  beamed  so  kindly  from  her  moist  eye, 
as  she  smiled  a  good  bye  to  her  son  in  the  distance. 
Who  can  estimate  the  effect  of  such  a  mother's  affection 
on  a  young  man's  future  ?  Upon  the  subject  of  this  sketch 
it  has  borne  its  fruit.  Early  manifesting  a  fondness  for 
learning,  being  of  a  thoughtful  and  studious  disposition, 
he  soon  took  place  among  the  first  for  good  conduct  and 
ability. 

After  leaving  Ovid,  he  entered  the  celebrated  Genes- 
see  Wesleyan  Seminary,  at  Lima,  New  York,  where  he 
vigorously  pursued  his  course  of  study,  taking  active  part 
in  the  literary  societies,  and  obtaining  at  that  early  age  a 
good  reputation  as  a  sound  debater  and  logical  reasoner, 
rather  than  as  a  celebrity  in  high-sounding  periods  and 
classical  allusions.  His  efforts  were  directed  rather  to 
demonstrate  the  truth  and  value  of  a  position,  than  to 
tickle  the  ear  of  the  multitude.     Having  acceptably  and 


CORXELIUS   COLE.  525 

thoroughly  prepared  himself  for  college,  he  entered  the 
Wesleyan  University  of  Middletown,  Conn.,  whence,  after 
three  years  of  collegiate  life,  he  graduated  with  honor. 
While  here  the  writer  was  his  room-mate,  the  last  year  of 
his  college  life,  and  many  personal  incidents  occurred, 
now  dimly  shadowed  by  time.  They  peep  out  from  the 
dark  curtain  of  past  memories,  too  faint  in  outline  for 
even  a  willing  pen  to  portray,  but  often  the  subject  of 
pleasant  musing.  At  the  close  of  the  first  term,  we  found 
our  funds  running  alarmingly  short.  An  investigation 
showed  that  the  senior  member  of  the  firm,  and  in  conse- 
quence purse-bearer,  had  made  very  frequent  investments 
in  loans  to  impecunious  students,  which  proved  very  gen- 
erally permanent,  and  necessitated  extreme  economy  for 
some  time  to  come ;  this  was  accomplished  by  hiring  an 
old  woman  to  cook,  and  buying  our  food  in  bulk  ;  even 
yet,  a  pang  of  regret  comes  at  the  recollection  of  a  tub 
of  butter  purchased  cheap,  but  only  superficially  good. 
Its  depths  were  strong  as  Homer's  heroes.  The  answer, 
too,  of  our  butcher,  to  a  remonstrance  against  tough  beef, 
^'that  we  didn't  buy  much,  and  he  wanted  it  to  last,"  did 
not  appear  half  as  witty  then  as  it  does  now.  After 
awhile  the  writer,  as  junior  member,  was  compelled  to  car- 
ry the  money,  from  the  fact  that  an  inability  to  say  No 
seemed  chronic  with  his  senior,  and  the  two  students  were 
consequently  enabled  to  board  again.  At  the  levee  of 
the  graduating  class  at  the  house  of  President  Olin,  the 
Rev.  Doctor  asked:  ^'Mr.  Cole,  w^hat  do  you  purpose  to 
do?"  The  answer  was:  "I  intend  to  study  law,  sir!" 
*'Well,  said  the  Doctor,  a  man  mmj  be  a  good  lawyer  and 
a  good  Christian,  but  it's  a  pretty  tight  squeeze." 

After  graduating,  the  law  student  was  for  some  time 
in  the  office  of  Hon.  William  H.  Seward,  at  Auburn,  New 
York,  where  he  was  admitted  to  the  bar  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  the  State  of  New  York,  May  1st,  1848.  In 
1849  he  started  overland  to  California,  arriving  there  in 
July  of  that  year,  having  suffered  severe  hardships  upon 
''the  plains."  After  mining  some  months  in  El  Dorado 
county,  he  removed  to  San  Prancisco,  where  he  engaged 
in  the  practice  of  his  profession  about  two   years.     He 


52 G  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

then  removed  to  Sacramento,  where  he  practiced  over 
ten  years. 

While  in  Sacramento,  he  was  one  of  the  first  and  most 
prominent  organizers  and  supporters  of  the  Republican 
party,  when  Republicanism  was  sufficient  cause  for  per- 
sonal injury  and  unlimited  abuse  of  its  advocates  ;  of 
which  he  received  a  full  share,  including  personal  threats, 
and  persistent  efforts  to  injure  his  business.  Much  of  the 
subsequent  success  of  Republicanism  is  doubtless  due  to 
his  persistent,  fearless,  and  honest  support,  in  those  hours 
of  trial.  He  was  defeated  as  a  candidate  for  Clerk  of 
Supreme  Court  of  California,  in  1856,  during  which  year 
he  edited  and  published  the  Sacramento  Daily  Times ^  the 
leading  Republican  paper  in  the  State,  in  the  Presidential 
contest  then  pending.  He  was  District  Attorney  for  the 
City  and  County  of  Sacramento  in  1859,  1860  and  1861. 
He  afterward  resided  a  year  in  Santa  Cruz,  California, 
still  engaged  in  his  profession. 

He  was  married  January  6th,  1853,  to  Miss  Olive  Cole- 
grove,  of  Trumansburg,  Tompkins  County,  Kew  York,  an 
estimable  lady,  with  whom  he  has  since  lived  in  great  do- 
mestic happiness,  the  union  being  blessed  with  numerous 
offspring. 

In  1863,  Mr.  Cole  was  elected  to  Congress  by  ballot 
through  the  whole  State,  receiving  64,985  votes.  He 
served  in  the  thirty-eighth  Congress,  on  the  Committees 
on  Post  Offices,  and  Post  Roads,  and  on  the  Pacific  Rail 
Road.  He  introduced  and  carried  through  Congress  the 
important  bill  establishing  a  Steam  Mail  Line  to  China 
and  Japan,  and  several  other  prominent  measures. 

In  December,  1866,  Mr.  Cole  was  elected  to  the  ' 
United  States  Senate,  to  succeed  Hon.  James  A.  McDou- 
gall,  receiving  on  first  ballot  in  Republican  caucus  sixty 
votes  to  thirty-one  cast  for  Aaron  A.  Sargent,  and  on  first 
ballot  in  joint  legislature  ninety-two  votes  against  twen- 
ty-six for  W.  T.  Coleman,  the  Democratic  candidate.  He 
entered  the  Senate  March  4th,  1867,  and  served  on  Com- 
mittees for  Appropriations,  Claims,  Manufactures,  Post 
Offices  and  Post  Roads,  and  Revision  of  Laws. 

As  will  be  inferred  from  the  above,  Mr.  Cole's  pecu- 


CORNELIUS    COLE.  527 

liar  characteristics  are  unswerving  integrity  of  action  and 
intention,  tenacity  of  purpose,  a  contempt  for  wealth  and 
its  influences,  a  strong  sense. of  justice,  and  fidelity  in 
friendships.  Domestic  and  temperate  in  habit,  and  mod- 
est in  ambition,  his  honors  have  been  thrust  upon  him, 
rather  than  plucked  down  by  a  bold  hand. 


JOHN  R.  MCCONNELL 

^Y    )VlLLIAM    ji,    J^HODES. 


JOHN  R.  McCoNNELL,  the  leading  lawyer  of  Northern 
California,  was  born  in  Kentucky  in  the  year  1826. 
He  is  descended  from  Scotch-Irish  stock,  and  his  ances- 
tors originally  settled  in  the  State  of  Pennsylvania.  At 
an  early  day,  one  branch  of  the  family  removed  to  the 
wilds  of  Kentucky.  On  the  mother's  side,  Mr.  McCon- 
nell  is  lineally  descended  from  the  family  of  the  Clarksons, 
who  are  of  English  origin,  and  originally  settled  in  the 
county  of  Albemarle,  in  old  Virginia.  He  was  the  twelfth 
child  in  a  family  of  thirteen. 

As  early  as  1833,  his  father  removed  to  the  State  of 
Illinois,  and  soon  settled  on  a  farm,  near  the  town  of 
Jacksonville,  the  county  seat  of  Morgan  county.  The 
next  year  his  father  died,  and  two  years  afterwards,  his 
mother  In  1841,  he  returned  to  Kentucky,  and  resided 
in  the  family  of  a  brother-in-law,  in  Bourbon  county, 
until  1846. 

He  attended  several  respectable  institutions  of  learn- 
ing, both  in  Illinois  and  Kentucky;  but  his  education 
was  chiefly  derived  from  the  private  tutorship  of  Profes- 
sor Vaughn,  now  of  the  city  of  Cincinnati.  This  gentle- 
man now  stands  at  the  head  of  the  mathematicians  of  the 
West.  Under  his  tutor,  McConnell  made  rapid  strides  in 
classical  studies,  but  became  eminent  in  mathematical 
and  metaphysical  lore.  In  the  higher  mathematics  especi- 
34 


530  REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OF  THE  PACIFIC. 

ally,  he  excelled,  and  to  this  day  nothing  seems  to  afford 
him  more  pleasure  than  a  dash  into  the  mysteries  of 
curvilinear  and  conic  sections. 

In  the  year  1844,  abandoning,  on  account  of  ill  health, 
the  original  design  of  a  military  education  at  West  Point, 
he  commenced  the  study  of  law,  under  the  tuition  of 
John  Martin,  Esq.,  at  that  time  a  leading  member  of  the 
bar  of  BourlDon  county.  But  from  him  he  derived  only 
slight  assistance,  and  has  been  always  self-reliant  in  the 
acquisition  of  that  profound  knowledge  of  law  to  which 
he  has  attained.  Some  assistance,  however,  he  did  derive 
from  a  short  matriculation  at  Transylvania  University, 
where  his  studies  were,  for  a  time,  directed  by  such  mas- 
ters of  the  profession  as  Judges  Wooley,  Rol3ertson,  and 
Thomas  A.  Marshall.  Ill  health,  however,  soon  com- 
pelled him  to  quit  the  law  school,  and  he  was  again 
thrown  upon  his  own  resources. 

In  1846,  removing  again  to  Illinois,  he  commenced 
the  practice  of  law  at  the  early  age  of  twenty-one  years. 
Two  years  after  this,  we  again  find  him  moving — for  early 
in  1848  he  was  located  at  Natchez,  in  the  State  of 
Mississippi. 

It  was  during  his  residence  in  Mississippi,  that  young 
McConnell  commenced  laying  in  that  fund  of  useful  inform- 
ation on  some  branches  of  the  law  which  afterwards 
contributed  so  largely  to  his  benefit,  and  to  that  of  his 
adopted  State.  In  N'atchez,  we  find  him  applying  himself 
to  the  study  of  Justinian's  Institutes,  and  that  splendid 
body  of  civil  law  which  has  come  down  to  us  from  the 
age  of  Tribonian.  Before  he  had  time  to  avail  himself  of 
any  of  the  knowledge  thus  acquired,  the  news  of  the 
discovery  of  gold  in  California  reached  his  place  of  resi- 
dence, and  early  in  1849,  in  company  with  his  friend  Col. 
E.  J.  Saunders,  (afterwards  so  well  known  in  Nicaragua 
and  during  the  Confederate  war)  he  started  across  the 
plains  to  California.  He  arrived  here  early  in  October, 
1849,  and  settled  as  a  miner  in  the  vicinity  of  Placerville. 
It  was  bruited  abroad  that  he  was,  by  profession,  a  lawyer, 
and  he  soon  engaged  warmly  in  the  disputes  before  the 
various  Alcaldes'  courts  in  the  vicinity.      Here  he  met 


JOHN   R.    MCCOXNELL.  531 

Judge  John  Heard,  now  of  Sacramento,  and  the  Hon. 
Frank  M.  Pixley,  of  San  Francisco.  There  not  being  a  single 
law  book  in  the  whole  district,  the  discussions,  and  the 
decisions  equally,  must  have  been  rather  crude  and  ill 
digested ;  but  we  have  reason  to  believe  that  the  germ  of 
the  entire  mining  jurisprudence  of  California  sprang  from 
those  early  deliberations.  Finally  induced  to  abandon 
mining  by  the  growing  wants  of  the  community  for  legal 
knowledge,  as  well  as  by  the  reputation  he  had  already 
acquired  as  a  jurist,  he  took  up  his  residence  early  in 
1851  at  Nevada  City,  and  devoted  himself  thenceforth 
to  the  practice  of  his  profession. 

In  the  opening  of  this  sketch,  we  have  characterized 
McConnell  as  the  leading  lawyer  of  Northern  California. 
To  those  who  have  met  him  oftenest  at  the  bar,  and 
know  him  best  in  the  higher  walks  of  the  profession,  we 
need  adduce  no  proof  other  than  such  encounters  have 
furnished.  But  proof  is  not  wanting  of  a  more  reliable 
and  a  less  perishable  character. 

The  records  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  California,  for 
many  years,  as  preserved  in  the  reports,  afford  ample 
testimony  upon  this  point.  It  is  not  going  too  far  to 
assert,  that  the  briefs  and  argument*  of  John  R.  McCon- 
nell, before  that  tribunal,  have  done  more  towards 
building  up  the  mining  law  of  this  State  than  the  labors 
of  any  other  counselor  upon  this  coast.  To  an  inex- 
haustible fund  of  learning,  he  added  indomitable  industry, 
and  a  perception  quick,  sure,  and  intuitive;  methodical 
almost  to  formality,  he  drilled  his  arguments  into  the 
forms  of  logical  sequence,  that  in  most  cases  amounted 
to  mathematical  demonstration.  But  his  memory  is, 
perhaps,  the  most  remarkable  trait  of  a  most  remarkable 
mind.  It  seems  to  be  absolutely  infallible.  Piled  up  in 
the  deep  reservoirs  of  his  capacious  intellect,  he  calls 
forth  these  argosies  of  wealth  at  a  moment's  notice,  and 
launches  them  upon  the  tide  of  learning  with  an  abandon 
that  produces  amazement. 

No  point  of  law  bearing  upon  the  subject  under  dis- 
cussion seems  ever  to  be  overlooked  or  hidden ;  and  very 
often  his  adversary  finds   that  he   is   more  thoroughly 


532  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF  THE   PACIFIC. 

versed  in  his  own  case  than  he  is  himself.  Kor  is  there 
any  other  branch  of  learning  that  Mr.  McConnell  has 
neglected.  Dr.  Johnson  said  of  Gibbon,  that  "no 
man  could  casually  meet  him  under  an  awning,  during 
a  shower,  and  hear  him  speak  five  minutes,  without 
saying  at  once,  '  Here  is  the  most  remarkable  genius 
in  Great  Britain.'  "  This  great  praise  can  also  be  applied 
almost  as  faithfully  to  the  subject  of  this  sketch.  He 
appears  to  be  like  Macaulay,  almost  omniscient — all 
science,  art,  and  philosophy  are  equally  at  his  command. 
He  has  studied  almost  every  branch  of  human  learning — 
and  when  at  leisure,  seated  at  the  fireside  amongst  his 
friends,  he  pours  forth  such  prolific  streams  of  informa- 
tion, that  his  mind  appears  inexhaustible.  He  is  withal 
an  acute  observer  of  nature,  as  well  as  a  profound 
student  of  man  ;  and  in  political  ethics,  including  the 
history  of  party  in  the  United  States,  he  has  no  super- 
ior. Nicholas  Biddle's  panegyric  on  the  true  lawyer, 
applies  with  great  force  to  McConnell,  "who,  not  content 
with  the  ordinary  routine  of  litigation,  seeks  in  all  liberal 
arts,  in  all  sciences,  and  throughout  the  whole  domain  of 
learning,  whatsoever  may  dignify  and  adorn  his  noble 
occupation." 

As  a  teacher  of  law,  McConnell  deserves  more  than  a 
passing  notice.  His  office  has  been  commonly  filled  with 
young  men  in  pursuit  of  a  knowledge  of  that  science, 
"  whose  seat,"  old  Hooker  declares,"  is  the  bosom  of  God, 
and  whose  voice  is  the  harmony  of  the  world."  Amongst 
those  who  sought  the  instruction  of  McConnell,  were 
Edward  Craig,  Esq.,  of  Placer  county,  and  the  Hon. 
Wm.  M.  Stewart,  at  present  Senator  of  the  United  States 
from  the  State  of  Nevada.  Both  these  gentlemen  are 
able  lawyers,  as  well  as  renowned  politicians ;  and  Stewart 
owes  all  his  dialectic  skill,  ingenuity,  and  eloquence  to  the 
early  training  of  McConnell.  It  would  of  course  be 
expected  that  a  man  gifted  with  such  talents  as  McCon- 
nell's,  should  at  some  period  of  life  be  lifted  up  into 
public  station.  As  early  as  1853,  he  was  elected  Attor- 
ney General  of  California,  and  held  that  position  until 
1856.     Twice  he  has  been  unsuccessful  in  his  political 


JOHN  R.    MCCONNELL.  533 

aspirations.  In  1861,  he  was  the  Democratic  candidate 
for  Governor  of  California,  on  a  peace  platform,  but  was 
defeated  by  Gov.  Stanford;  and  again  in  1864,  he  ran  for 
the  Supreme  Judgeship,  in  the  neighboring  State  of 
Nevada,  but  failed  in  securing  his  election. 

In  political  opinion,  McConnell  may  be  classed  as  an 
old  school  strict  constructionist.  He  gravitates  toward 
Calhoun  rather  than  toward  Stanton  or  Seward.  It  is 
true,  that  in  1860  he  endorsed  Judge  Douglas  for  the 
Presidency  instead  of  Breckinridge;  but  the  preference 
seems  to  have  been  more  the  result  of  personal  friendship 
than  of  party  affinity. 

Mr.  McConnell  has  been  thrice  married.  His  first 
wife  was  Rebecca  Cross,  of  Nevada  City;  his  second, 
Ann  Eliza  Moore,  of  Fayette  county,  Kentucky;  and 
his  third,  Sallie  B.  Darby,  eldest  daughter  of  Dr.  J.  Custis 
Darby,  an  eminent  physician  of  Lexington,  Kentucky. 
With  this  lady  he  is  still  living  at  his  old  home  in  Nevada 
city,  the  centre  of  a  large  band  of  friends  and  clients. 

In  person,  Mr.  McConnell  is  of  medium  height,  and 
rather  spare  build.  His  complexion  is  sallow,  but  re- 
lieved by  one  of  the  blackest  and  brightest  eyes  that  ever 
shot  forth  fiery  eloquence,  rapid  thought,  and  stern  denun- 
ciation upon  an  opponent.  Few  men  can  meet  that  glance 
without  quailing.  It  is  of  that  intense  magnetic  flame 
that  dazzles  and  consumes.  Of  late,  Mr.  McConnell' s 
health  has  not  been  robust,  but  we  trust  that  he  will  live 
long  to  illustrate  the  annals  of  California. 


OGDEN  HOFFMAN. 

^Y    THE    pDITOR. 


THIS  •gentleman,  who  has  been  for  so  many  years  United 
States  District  Judge  for  the  District  of  California, 
was  born  in  the  city  of  New  York,  October  16th,  1822. 
His  ancestors  were  from  Holland,  and  were  among  the 
earliest  settlers  of  New  Amsterdam.  His  father,  Hon. 
Ogden  HoJBfman,  was  long  one  of  the  most  influential 
leaders  of  the  Whig  party.  He  possessed  the  graces  and 
powers  of  oratory  in  a  wonderful  degree ;  was  unrivalled 
as  a  debater,  and  ^'proudly  eminent"  on  the  hustings. 
He  was  one  of  the  most  accomplished  lawyers  of  the 
Empire  State,  his  fame  eclipsifig  even  that  of  his  father, 
Josiah  Ogden  Hoffman.  At  the  time  of  his  death,  in 
May,  1853,  a  meeting  of  the  New  York  bar  was  held,  at 
which  Wn;.  M.  Evarts  and  others,  who  had  witnessed  his 
forensic  triumphs  and  his  able  management  of  great  civil 
and  criminal  causes,  paid  feeling  tributes  to  the  nobility 
of  his  nature,  the  greatness  of  his  mind,  and  the  fullness 
of  his  learning. 

Mr.  Hoffman,  our  subject,  graduated  from  Columbia 
College  in  1840,  and  determined  to  prepare  himself  for 
the  bar.  He  studied  law  at  Dane  Law  School,  Harvard 
University,  for  about  two  years,  under  Judge  Story  and 
Simon  Greenleaf.  He  afterwards  read  law  under  Mark 
Sibley,  of  Canandaigua,  New  York,  and  under  Benjamin 
D.  Silliman,  of  New  York  city.     After  being  admitted,  he 


536  HEPRESENTATIYE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

spent  nearly  two  years  in  foreign  travel ;  returning,  opened 
an  office  in  New  York  city,  and  practiced  law  for  two  or 
three  years. 

Mr.  Hoffman  arrived  at  San  Francisco,  May  16th,  1850, 
and  entered  immediately  on  the  practice  of  law.  He  had 
not  been  in  his  home  a  year  when,  in  March,  1851,  Presi- 
dent Fillmore  appointed  him  United  States  District  Judge 
for  the  Northern  District  of  California — Mr.  Hoffman 
being  then  twenty-eight  years  of  age. 

There  were  several  weighty  reasons  which  nearly  moved 
the  young  appointee  to  decline  the  proffered  honor. 
Recognizing  in  the  appointment  a  graceful  compliment  to 
his  father  (who  had  long  been  the  warm  friend  and  sup- 
porter of  Mr.  Fillmore)  and  being  young  and  inexperi- 
enced, he  hesitated  to  accept  the  responsibilities  of  a 
position  for  which  he  felt  himself  unqualified :  moreover, 
litigation  was  rife  at  that  day  in  San  Francisco,  and  his 
prospects  were  flattering  to  acquire  an  ample  reward  for 
his  labors  in  the  profession.  But,  being  urged  by  his 
friends  and  advised  by  his  father,  he  assumed  the  ermine, 
and  (it  is  not  undue  praise  to  say  it)  though  he  has  many 
times  regretted  his  acceptance  of  the  office,  the  people  of 
California  are  grateful  that  he  did  accept. 

As  District  Judge — a  position  which  he  has  held  for  a 
period  of  eighteen  years — he  has  distinguished  himself, 
and  won  an  enviable  reputation  among  the  people  of  his 
adopted  State  for  his  integrity  and  learning.  Upon  him 
has  devolved,  in  a  large  degree,  the  settlement  of  the  con- 
flicting land  titles  of  the  State,  in  controversies  existing 
between  the  Federal  Government  and  claimants  under 
Mexican  grants.  His  decisions,  while  they  have  uniformly 
been  sound  and  impartial,  have  not  only  given  stability 
to  titles,  but  they  have  acquired  the  confidence  and  com- 
manded the  respect  of  the  whole  community.  In  all  the 
varied  duties  of  the  bench  over  which  he  presides,  he  has 
exemplified  a  high  degree  of  capacity  and  intelligence; 
and  the  opinions  which  he  has  delivered  from  time  to 
time  are  being  made  the  subject  of  a  forthcoming  pub- 
lication of  Reports,  which  is  anxiously  looked  for  by  the 
public,  besides  a  volume  of  land  cases  already  issued. 


OGDEN   HOFFMAN.  537 

Judge  Hoffman  possesses  classical  attainments  of  a 
high  order,  and  is  a  fine  linguist.  The  editor  has  heard 
him  declare  in  conversation  his  belief  that  it  is  impos- 
sible for  any  person,  no  matter  how  studious  and  talent- 
ed, to  master  any  language  except  his  own.  He  speaks 
French,  has  some  knowledge  of  other  modern  tongues, 
and  there  is  probably  no  more  accomplished  Greek  and 
Latin  scholar  in  California.  He  is  a  constant  reader,  a 
most  agreeable  conversationalist,  and  possesses  a  memory 
retentive,  and  enriched  with  gleanings  from  a  wide  range 
of  eclectic  information  and  classic  lore. 


ISAAC  ROWELL 

^y   pAJLVIN    ^  yVlcJ)ONAJLD. 


DR.  Isaac  Rowell  was  born  in  Coos  county,  New 
Hampshire,  in  1818.  He  is  descended  from  the 
Pilgrims,  his  ancestors  having  come  from  England  with 
that  historic  company  who  came  in  the  Mayflower;  and 
through  successive  generations  his  family  have  been 
earnest  and  progressive  Republicans,  in  the  broad  and 
national  sense  of  the  term.  He  was  educated  at  Dart- 
mouth College,  including  its  literary,  scientific,  and 
medical  courses,  and  at  once  entered  upon  the  practice 
of  medicine  at  Gardiner,  Maine.  In  1849,  he  joined  the 
great  procession  of  enterprise  and  adventure  moving  to 
the  farthest  West,  and  coming  by  way  of  Cape  Horn, 
arrived  in  San  Francisco  on  the  16th  of  June  of  that 
year.  He  at  once  announced  himself  as  a  physician  and 
surgeon,  opened  an  office  near  the  place  still  occupied 
by  him,  and  soon  became  a  popular  and  successful  prac- 
titioner. From  that  time  to  the  present,  his  office  has 
been  the  daily  resort  of  suffering  humanity,  a  large  por- 
tion of  his  attention  and  skill  being  devoted  to  the  poor, 
expecting  and  receiving  no  reward  save  the  pleasant  con- 
sciousness of  having  sought  to  relieve  the  distresses  of 
the  friendless  and  despairing. 

In  1852,  Dr.  Howell  became  interested  in  military 
affairs,  and  raised  the  first  cavalry  company  organized 
on  this  coast — the  Eureka  Light-Horse  Guards — which 


540  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

afterwards  became  the  First  Light  Dragoons,  and  which 
was  remarkable  as  one  of  the  finest  companies  in  the 
Union.  After  holding  command  several  years,  having 
been  unanimously  elected  captain  at  the  organization  of 
the  company,  the  First  Light  Dragoons,  the  National 
Lancers,  Capt.  Thomas  Hayes,  the  First  National  Guard — 
Light  Artillery — Capt.  Thomas  D.  Johns,  united  under 
the  organization  known  as  the  First  California  Mounted 
Battalion ;  and  at  the  first  meeting,  every  member  being 
present,  every  vote  was  cast  for  Dr.  Rowell  as  com- 
mander— an  instance  of  that  popularity  which  he  has 
always  enjoyed  in  every  relation  of  life. . 

In  1855,  he  took  a  leading  part  in  organizing  the 
Medical  Department  of  the  University  of  the  Pacific,  and 
was  elected  to  the  Chair  of  Chemistry;  also  lecturing 
in  various  other  departments  of  the  institution ;  and  for 
one  full  term  occupying  the  Chairs  of  Chemistry  and 
Surgery  with  complete  satisfaction  to  the  Faculty;  while 
at  the  same  time  performing  the  duties  of  an  extensive 
and  increasing  practice;  affording  an  illustration  of 
physical  endurance  and  executive  capacity  almost  un- 
paralleled in  the  history  of  his  profession,  and  which 
could  be  performed  only  by  the  most  vigorous  and  reso- 
lute mind.  At  the  commencement  of  the  War  of  Re- 
bellion, this  institution  was  broken  up;  many  of  the 
students  betook  themselves  to  the  field,  and  became  dis- 
tinguished in  the  reports  as  army-surgeons,  attesting  the 
thoroughness  of  the  instruction  received  of  Cooper, 
Rowell,  and  the  other  earnest  and  devoted  men  who  had 
founded  a  college  of  Medicine  and  Surgery  among  the 
first  public  institutions  of  their  young  State. 

In  1866,  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  San  Fran- 
cisco Board  of  Supervisors,  having  been  an  independent 
candidate,  and  received  a  large  majority  of  the  popular 
vote.  That  position,  hardly  less  important  than  a  mem- 
bership of  the  State  Legislature,  was  sought  in  order  to 
correct  abuses  and  errors  existing  in  the  City  and  County 
Hospital,  to  which  Dr.  Rowell  gave  his  earnest  attention 
during  his  term  of  office.  Having  served  in  that  capacity 
two  years  and  a  half,  and  accomplished  the  desired  re- 


ISAAC   ROWELL.  541 

form,  he  declined  a  renomination ;  and  on  his  retirement 
from  office  was  publicly  presented  with  a  magnificent  set 
of  silverware  by  a  number  of  leading  citizens,  who  de- 
sired to  express  their  approbation  of  his  faithful  and 
public  spirited  conduct  as  a  member  of  the  local  Leg- 
islature. It  was  the  most  beautiful  and  costly  gift 
ever  received  by  any  private  citizen  of  San  Francisco, 
and  was  so  referred  to  by  the  public  journals  of  that 
time. 

Up  to  the  commencement  of  the  great  rebellion.  Dr. 
Rowell  had  been  an  active  and  conspicuous  member  of 
the  Democratic  party;  but  at  that  time,  together  with 
thousands  of  earnest  and  patriotic  men  who  held  the 
principles  of  Thomas  Jefferson,  he  at  once  took  a  fore- 
most and  resolute  stand  for  the  restoration  and  preserva- 
tion of  the  Union.  He  supported  the  second  election 
of  Mr.  Lincoln,  made  his  first  political  speech  in  behalf 
of  that  illustrious  man,  and  abandoning  a  large  and 
lucrative  practice,  traversed  the  State  at  his  own  expense, 
and  took  an  active  and  important  part  in  the  presidential 
campaign.  His  political  speeches  were  earnest,  inspiring, 
and  effective,  and  perhaps  no  single  citizen  did  more  to 
create  and  give  direction  to  public  sentiment  during  the 
cloudy  and  perilous  days  of  our  country.  Everywhere 
the  sturdy  and  enthusiastic  doctor  communicated  the 
electrism  of  his  own  strong  and  earnest  soul  to  the 
people ;  and  he  returned  with  honor  and  distinction  from 
a  turbulent  and  even  dangerous  canvass,  to  resume  his 
gentler  rounds  among  the  children  of  affliction,  having 
obeyed,  the  irresistible  impulses  of  his  hereditary  nature, 
and  struck  a  blow  for  Union,  freedom,  and  the  rights  of 
men. 

In  1868,  he  was  elected  Health  Officer  of  the  city  of 
San  Francisco  by  the  Board  of  Supervisors;  and  in  that 
capacity,  during  an  alarming  and  desolating  epidemic, 
displayed  a  characteristic  energy  and  devotion,  giving  him- 
self up  wholly  to  the  duties  of  a  perilous  and  thankless 
office,  visiting  the  dreary  abodes  of  the  pestilence,  con- 
tributing to  the  relief  of  the  poor,  and  as  ever,  earnest, 
active,  conscientious,  and  untiring.     We  believe  he  made 


i 


'J^*"    Ot    Ti^ 


"^,. 


^ 


542  REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OF  THE  PACIFIC. 

the  only  post  inortem  ex3imm2ition  of  small-pox  that  occurred 
during  the  prevalence  of  that  awful  scourge. 

Having  glanced  rapidly  over  the  public  services  of  one 
of  the  most  noted  and  valuable  of  private  citizens,  it  may 
be  added  that  Dr.  Rowell  ranks  high  with  the  most  dis- 
tinguished physicians  and  surgeons  of  San  Francisco. 
Being  one  of  the  oldest,  he  is  also  one  of  the  ablest  and 
most  popular,  not  only  in  the  estimation  of  the  public, 
but  likewise  with  the  members  of  his  profession.  In 
private  association  he  is  social,  generous,  and  sympathetic, 
ambitious  of  popularity  and  of  distinction  as  a  man  of 
liberality  and  public  spirit;  caring  far  more  for  the  good 
opinion  and  friendship  of  his  fellow-men  than  for  all  the 
golden  treasures  that  could  be  heaped  around  him.  In 
the  lecture-room,  he  is  versatile,  instructive,  and  enter- 
taining, giving  apt  expressions  to  thoughts  original,  philo- 
sophical, or  humorous,  as  the  circumstances  and  fancy  of 
the  moment  may  suggest.  The  structure  of  his  mental 
organism  leads  to  inquiry,  analysis,  and  invention ;  and 
perhaps  no  member  of  the  Faculty  in  this  State  is  better 
adapted  to  the  requirements  of  the  lecture-room  in  a 
medical  institute.  As  a  citizen,  he  is  well  informed, 
public  spirited,  and  liberal,  closely  observing  every  new 
movement  of  the  public  mind,  taking  part  in  every 
worthy  enterprise,  and  contributing  freely,  generously, 
and  almost  thoughtlessly  to  the  appeals  of  charity;  the 
chief  obstacle  to  his  greater  professional  success  and  fame 
being  the  multiform  and  eclectic  nature  of  his  occupa- 
tions, and  his  irresistible  desire  to  take  part  in  every 
great  public  enterprise,  and  to  be  personally  identified 
with  every  great  work  of  progress  and  reform.  The 
physician's  highway  to  eminence  is  through  the  quiet 
and  sorrowful  places  of  affliction,  and  it  is  a  long  dis- 
tance; but  in  the  scale  of  an  unselfish  philanthropy,  it 
may  claim  precedence  in  the  loftiest  occupations  of  man- 
kind. To  breast  the  beating  storm  at  midnight,  and 
linger  till  gray  dawn  in  the  abode  of  poverty,  in  spite  of 
the  invocations  of  sleep,  and  with  scarcely  any  hope  of 
reward  other  than  the  intangible  fees  of  conscience,  are 
acts  of  the  sublimest  heroism. 


ISAAC   ROWELL.  543 

Professor  Rowell  is  still  in  the  prime  of  vigorous  life, 
as  appears  from  the  excellent  portrait  preceding  this 
sketch.  In  personal  presence  he  is  as  manly  and  noble 
as  he  is  refined,  humane,  and  generous  in  the  structure 
of  his  mind.  And  whether  in  social  companionship  with 
his  friends,  in  the  public  assembly  of  his  fellow-citizens, 
or  in  the  abodes  of  threatening  death  or  friendless 
poverty,  he  is  always  recognizable  among  the  highest 
types  of  enlightened  mankind  and  the  truest  of  American 
citizenship. 


NATHANIEL  BENNETT. 

^Y    THE    pDITOl^ 


THIS  gentleman  is  one  of  the  oldest  practitioners  at  the 
San  Francisco  bar.  For  nearly  twenty  years,  with 
the  exception  of  the  time  when  he  occupied  a  seat  upon 
the  Supreme  Bench  of  California,  and  the  further  period 
of  nearly  five  years  passed  in  two  visits  to  the  Eastern 
States,  he  has  been  actively  engaged  in  the  practice  of 
law  in  the  metropolis  of  the  Pacific. 

Judge  Bennett  is  of  regular  old  Puritan  stock.  His 
father  and  mother  were  born  and  married  in  Fairfield 
county,  Connecticut,  where  their  ancestors  had  resided 
for  several  generations.  A  short  time  after  their  mar- 
riage, his  parents  removed  to  Caatskill,  then  a  village  just 
beginning  to  flourish  in  the  State  of  New  York,  and 
where  his  father  engaged  in  the  mercantile  business  for 
some  years.  The  latter  afterwards  moved  to  Clinton, 
Oneida  county,  at  which  place  Hamilton  College  had  then 
lately  been  established.  His  object  in  moving  to  Clinton 
was  to  embrace  the  better  opportunities  which  offered  for 
the  education  of  his  children. 

Two  of  his  sons,  older  brothers  of  Nathaniel,  gradu- 
ated at  Hamilton  College.  One  of  them  was  for  many 
years  chief  judge  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  in  Erie 
county.  New  York.  The  other  was  also  a  lawyer,  and 
practiced  his  profession  in  New  York  city,  in  partnership 
w^ith  Hugh  Maxwell,  Esq.,  at  that  time  District  Attorney 
of  the  city.     This  brother  died  when  quite  a  young  man. 


646  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Nathaniel  Bennett  was  born  at  Clinton,  Oneida  county, 
Iv^ew  York,  on  the  27th  day  of  June,  1818.  When  he  was 
three  or  four  years  old  his  father  purchased  several  tracts 
of  land  of  considerable  extent,  in  Erie  county.  On  one 
of  these  tracts  he  settled  as  a  farmer,  moving  his  family 
thither  from  Clinton.  Nathaniel  passed  his  early  boy- 
hood on  this  farm,  and  in  his  twelfth  year  was  sent  to 
Buffalo  to  a  military  school,  then  lately  established  by 
the  celebrated  Captain  Partridge,  who  had  been  for  more 
than  twelve  years  principal  of  West  Point  Academy. 

Nathaniel  was  at  school  at  Buffalo  for  over  two  years. 
The  pupils  of  this  school  were  daily  subjected  to  regular 
military  drill  and  exercise,  after  the  fashion  at  West  Point. 
From  Buffalo,  young  Bennett  was  sent  to  the  Academy  at 
Canandaigua,  under  the  direction  of  Mr.  Howe,  where  he 
continued  his  studies  for  about  a  year.  One  of  his  school- 
mates at  Canandaigua  was  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  who  then 
gave  no  indication  of  his  subsequent  renown.  After 
leaving  the  Academy,  young  Bennett  was  sent  to  Hamil- 
ton College,  where  he  remained  one  year;  at  the  end  of 
that  time  he  entered  Yale  College. 

Mr.  Bennett  read  law  at  Buffalo,  New  York.  He  was 
admitted  to  practice  as  an  attorney  in  1840,  and  as  a 
counselor  in  1843.  He  practiced  at  Buffalo  from  1840 
until  the  fall  of  1842,  in  partnership  with  Eli  Cook,  a 
brother  of  Elisha  Cook,  Esq.,  of  San  Francisco.  He  then 
determined,  as  his  health  was  somewhat  impaired,  to  make 
a  tour  through  the  Southern  States.  In  1838-9,  he  had 
traveled  through  Ohio,  and  visited  many  parts  of  Indiana 
and  Kentucky,  but  had  beheld  no  spot  for  which  he  was 
willing  to  exchange  his  own  home — Buffalo.  Up  to  the 
time  of  his  starting  upon  his  second  and  longer  journey, 
Mr.  Bennett  had  always  been  an  ardent  Democrat,  and  a 
great  admirer  of  the  South  and  southern  institutions.  A 
radical  change  was  soon  to  come  over  his  feelings.  He 
passed,  on  horseback,  through  the  States  of  Ohio,  Indiana, 
Missouri,  Arkansas,  and  Louisana,  to  New  Orleans,  where 
he  spent  the  winter  of  1842-3.  In  the  following  spring,  he 
started  upon  his  return  trip.  He  rode,  on  horseback, 
through  eastern  Louisiana,  through  Mississippi,  Georgia, 


NATHANIEL   BENNETT.  547 

Tennessee,  Kentucky,  Virginia,  Pennsylvania,  and  New 
York,  to  Buffalo.  In  referring  to  this  tour.  Judge  Ben- 
nett has  stated  that  it  wrought  a  great  change  in  his 
views  concerning  southern  institutions,  country,  and 
people. 

Upon  his  return  home,  Mr.  Bennett  applied  himself 
closely  to  the  study  and  practice  of  his  profession.  When 
the  political  organization  known  as  ^'  Barnburners"  first 
arose,  under  the  leadership  of  Silas  Wright,  Benjamin  F. 
Butler,  Joseph  White,  John  Van  Buren,  and  others,  Mr. 
Bennett  embraced  the  principles  of  the  new  party  with 
enthusiasm.  He  was  a  member  of  the  celebrated  Barn- 
burners' convention  which  met  at  Buffalo  in  the  summer 
of  1848.  In  addition  to  the  men  just  named  above, 
Charles  Francis  Adams,  Charles  Sedgwick,  Alvin  Stewart, 
of  Utica,  and  James  W.  Nye,  now  U.  S.  Senator  of 
Nevada,  were  delegates  to  the  convention;  and  a  great 
many  others,  among  whom  were  some  of  the  most  noted 
men  of  the  Democratic  party,  who  had  determined  to 
sever  their  connection  with  the  latter  organization,  if  it 
continued  in  the  course  which  it  was  pursuing.  The  con- 
vention nominated  Martin  Van  Buren  for  the  presidency. 
The  result  of  the  election  is  known.  Silas  Wright,  truly 
a  great  man,  did  not  live  to  see  the  triumph  of  his  prin- 
ciples. Although  wedded  to  political  tenets  repugnant 
to  a  very  large  majority  of  his  fellow-citizens,  and  dying 
in  the  effort  to  engraft  his  views  upon  hostile  public 
sentiment,  millions  of  devoted  friends  and  magnanimous 
foes  lamented  his  death,  and  the  flag  of  his  country 
drooped  in  melancholy  appreciation  of  the  national  loss. 
Judge  Bennett  is  one  of  those  whose  hearts  were  cast 
down  by  the  tidings  of  his  death,  and  who  have  labored 
patiently  and  quietly  for  the  vindication  of  his  political 
principles,  and  the  establishment  of  a  great  national  party, 
whose  controlling  purpose  should  be  the  fulfilment  of  his 
prophecies  and  the  execution  of  his  high  designs. 

From  1843  to  the  summer  of  1848,  Mr.  Bennett  was 
exclusively  engaged  in  practicing  law.  His  success  was 
very,  considerable.  By  long  and  continued  labor,  and 
the  sacrifice  of  personal  comforts  and  enjoyments,  he  had 


548  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

acquired  a  competency ;  but  his  health  had  become  great- 
ly impaired.  He  was  closing  up  his  business  affairs,  with 
the  intention  of  spending  the  following  winter  in  Europe, 
when  the  discovery  of  gold  directed  his  attention  to 
California.  His  physicians  had  advised  him  to  take  a  sea 
voyage,  and  as  he  had  lost  his  health  in  the  pursuit  of 
gold,  he  hoped  in  like  manner  to  regain  it. 

About  the  time  Mr.  Bennett  determined  to  leave 
for  California,  a  few  of  his  friends  made  the  same  resolu- 
tion, and  their  united  efforts  got  together  a  pleasant  party 
of  twelve  persons,  mutual  acquaintances,  who  agreed  to 
make  the  long  sea  voyage  in  company.  Before  com- 
pleting the  arrangements  for  their  departure,  they  heard 
of  an  old  ship  announced  to  leave  New  London,  Con- 
necticut, for  San  Francisco.  Believing  that  a  vessel  leav- 
ing that  port  would  be  less  crowded  than  one  from  New 
York  city,  Mr.  Bennett,  on  behalf  of  his  little  party  of 
friends,  visited  New  London  and  inspected  the  ship.  She 
proved  to  be  the  Mentor^  a  whaling  vessel,  which  had 
been  built  by  Stephen  Girard  thirty-eight  years  before,  had 
made  several  long  voyages,  and  now  presented  a  sorrow- 
ful appearance.  Mr.  Bennett  was  not  fascinated  at  the 
sight  of  the  old  hulk  on  her  beams,  dismasted,  stanch- 
ions rotten,  and  innocent  of  paint.  Like  many  of  his 
old  writs  and  summonses,  he  thought  her  functus  officio. 
But,  upon  inquiry,  he  ascertained  that  her  timbers  were 
strong,  and  that  the  necessary  repairs  could  be  made  so 
as  to  render  her  entirely  sea-worthy.  Accordingly,  he 
engaged  passage  for  his  party.  The  owners  of  the  Mentor 
at  once  proceeded  to  fit  her  up  in  proper  manner ;  they 
painted  her,  put  up  her  masts,  made  two  cabins,  one 
having  capacity  for  fifty  steerage  passengers,  the  other 
just  large  enough  to  accommodate  Mr.  Bennett  and  his 
friends,  and  a  few  others,  making  twenty-five  in  all. 
The  Mentor  sailed  from  New  London  on  the  last  day  of 
January,  1849.  Our  little  band  of  pioneers  were  well 
provided  with  tents,  clothing,  provisions  and  every  variety 
of  implement  then  deemed  necessary  in  mining.  On  the 
first  day  out,  the  Mentor  encountered  a  violent  gale,  which 
severely  tested  her  strength  and  fitness  for  the  voyage 


NATHANIEL   BENNETT.  54:9 

she  had  undertaken.  She  behaved  splendidly,  but  hav- 
ing sprung  her  main  cap  she  was  obliged  to  put 
in  to  Rio  Janeiro  for  repairs.  After  a  week's  sojourn 
at  that  place,  enraptured  beholders  of  natural  scenery 
which,  in  magnificence  and  grandeur,  is  surpassed  by  that 
of  no  spot  on  earth,  the  voyagers  renewed  their  journey. 
Swiftly  and  gallantly,  the  old  Mentor  swept  round  the 
'^  Horn,"  passing  every  one  of  the  many  vessels  she  over- 
took on  the  way.  She  stayed  two  days  at  Juan  Fer- 
nandez, or  Robinson  Crusoe's  Island,  where  the  passen- 
gers landed.  Mr.  Bennett  and  his  companions  wandered, 
with  feelings  of  pleasurable  emotion,  over  this  famous 
island,  and  frequent  and  fervent  were  their  expressions 
of  admiration  for  the  genius  of  De  Foe,  whose  pen,  one 
hundred  and  thirty  years  before,  had  invested  this  lonely 
island  with  such  romantic  interest,  that  a  perpetual  charm 
will  linger  around  it  and  pervade  its  silent  lodges. 

The  Mentor  landed  her  passengers  at  San  Francisco,  on 
June  30th,  1849.  Judge  Bennett  has  stated  that  the  five 
months  consumed  in  the  voyage  round  the  ''Horn"  were 
passed  more  pleasantly  than  any  other  portion  of  his  life. 
The  captain  and  crew  of  the  Mentor  were  old  whalers  and 
well-behaved  men;  the  cabin  passengers  were  supplied 
with  books,  chess-boards,  cards,  etc. ;  and  as  Mr.  Bennett 
spent  considerable  time  every  day  in  studying  the  Spanish 
language — that  being  the  tongue  spoken  by  the  native 
population  of  California — it  may  easily  be  perceived  how 
the  long  ocean  voyage  was  rendered  agreeable,  and  even 
delightful.  Besides,  Mr.  Bennett  enjoyed  a  happy  exemp- 
tion from  sea-sickness  during  the  entire  trip. 

Upon  arriving  at  San  Francisco,  Mr.  Bennett's  com- 
pany determined  not  to  remain  in  the  city,  and  the  entire 
party  immediately  started  for  the  mines.  The  little  party 
did  not  cling  together  a  month,  but  broke  up,  like  all 
such  companies  in  those  times,  most  of  them  returning 
to  their  homes  in  the  Eastern  States. 

Mr.  Bennett  commenced  his  California  life  in  digging 
gold  on  the  Tuolumne  river,  on  a  bar  about  two  miles 
below  Jacksonville,  at  the  mouth  of  Wood's  creek.  This 
bar  proved  very  rich,  and   being  worked   by  a  goodly 


550  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

number  of  men,  yielded  an  immense  amount  of  gold. 
Mr.  Bennett  was  very  fortunate  at  mining:  he  continued 
at  his  new  occupation  for  about  three  months,  when  in 
response  to  the  repeated  solicitations  of  a  friend  practicing 
law  at  San  Francisco,  he  determined  to  repair  to  that  city, 
and  resume  the  practice  of  his  profession.  Accordingly, 
in  the  fall  of  1849,  he  returned  to  San  Francisco,  where 
he  formed  a  law  partnership  with  the  gentleman  who  had 
induced  him  to  leave  the  mines.  This  gentleman  was  the 
Hon.  John  Satterlee,  afterwards  Judge  of  the  Superior 
Court  of  San  Francisco,  one  of  Judge  Bennett's  earliest 
and  best  friends,  and  a  member  of  his  company,  but  who 
had  crossed  the  isthmus  in  advance  of  the  rest. 

During  his  long  sea  voyage,  Mr.  Bennett  had  made 
considerable  progress  in  his  study  of  the  Spanish  language ; 
and  after  commencing  practice  at  San  Francisco,  he  con- 
tinued his  studies  until  he  could  read  Spanish  law-books 
with  facility.  Soon  after  the  adoption  of  the  State 
constitution,  he  was  elected  a  State  senator  from 
San  Francisco.  He  had  been  in  his  seat  only  a  few  days, 
when  he  was  elected  by  the  Legislature  one  of  the  As- 
sociate Justices  of  the  Supreme  Court,  being  chosen  for 
the  longest  term,  six  years.  During  his  brief  senatorial 
career,  and  immediately  thereafter,  he  virtually  directed 
the  determination  of  an  important  question  then  agitating 
the  mind  of  the  legal  fraternity.  A  petition  signed  by 
many  practicing  members  of  the  San  Francisco  bar,  had 
been  submitted  to  the  Legislature,  praying  that  that  body 
would  retain  "in  its  substantial  elements,  the  system  of 
the  Civil  Law."  The  report  of  the  Judiciary  Committee, 
to  whom  this  petition  was  referred,  was  written  by  Judge 
Bennett,  and  led  to  the  prompt  adoption  of  the  Common 
Law  by  the  Legislature  then  in  session.  This  lettered 
exposition  of  the  general  principles  of  the  Civil  and  of 
the  Common  Law,  replete  with  arguments,  compactly 
marshalled,  in  favor  of  the  superiority  of  the  latter  system, 
will  be  found  in  the  first  volume  of  the  California  Law 
Reports.  It  has  lost  no  tittle  of  its  original  merit,  and 
cannot  be  too  often  read  by  the  law  student. 

Judge  Bennett  continued  on  the  Supreme  Bench  for 


NATHANIEL    BENNETT.  551 

about  two  years,  when  he  resigned,  his  salary  being  in- 
sufficient to  support  him  in  comfort.  The  nominal  salary 
of  a  Supreme  Judge  was  ten  thousand  dollars  per  annum, 
payable  quarterly ;  but  soon  after  the  organization  of  the 
State  government,  the  scrip  of  the  State  rapidly  declined, 
as  might  have  been  expected. 

Judge  Bennett  was  compelled  to  part  w4th  large 
amounts  of  scrip  for  fifty  cents  on  the  dollar,  and  some 
as  low  as  thirty-five  cents.  Upon  the  expectation  that 
the  paper  of  the  State  would  not  fall  much  below  par,  he 
had  contracted  some  debts,  drawing  a  high  rate  of 
interest,  and  to  remain  in  office  would  be  to  sink  deeper 
and  deeper  in  debt.  He  therefore  resigned,  and  entered 
upon  the  practice  of  law. 

In  October,  1850,  when  the  glad  tidings  came  slowly 
over  the  waters,  that  California  had  become  a  sovereign 
State  in  the  federal  sisterhood,  the  enthusiastic  citizens 
of  San  Francisco  celebrated  the  event  with  great  pomp 
and  ceremony.  Judge  Bennett  was  selected  to  deliver  the 
oration.  His  effort  on  that  occasion  was  printed  in  full 
in  the  columns  of  the  Alta  California,  and  other  newspapers 
of  the  city.  It  is  remembered  with  affectionate  admira- 
tion by  the  surviving  pioneers  of  the  State,  and  is  treasured 
among  the  archives  in  the  County  Recorder's  office  of 
San  Francisco.  It  is  a  masterpiece.  It  has  long  been  a 
favorite  piece  for  declamation  in  our  schools;  and  no 
matter  to  how  high  a  standard  the  literature  of  the  Pacific 
coast  may  in  future  attain,  must  ever  be  considered  and 
esteemed  as  a  California  classic.  This  oration  appears  in 
this  volume,  immediately 'following  this  sketch. 

In  1852-3,  Judge  Bennett  was  absent  from  the  State 
for  eighteen  months,  on  a  visit  to  the  Eastern  States. 
Upon  returning,  he  resumed  the  practice  of  law.  He 
devoted  himself  closely  to  his  profession,  and  paid  but 
little  attention  to  politics  until  the  formation  of  the 
Republican  party.  He  was  present,  and  took  part  in  the 
first  Republican  meeting  held  in  San  Francisco ;  and  was 
a  delegate  to  the  first  Republican  State  convention  held 
at  Sacramento,  being  elected  president  of  that  body. 
He  was  nominated  for  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  on 


652  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

the  first  Republican  State  ticket  voted  for  in  California, 
when  Hon.  Edward  Stanly  was  the  Republican  candidate 
for  Governor.  Being  defeated,  with  the  remainder  of  the 
Republican  nominees,  Judge  Bennett  paid  a  second  and 
longer  visit  to  his  old  home,  and  returned  to  San  Fran- 
cisco after  an  absence  of  three  years,  in  1860.  Since  that 
time,  he  has  been  in  continuous  practice  at  the  San  Fran- 
cisco bar.  From  1866  until  1868,  Judge  Bennett  was  in 
partnership  with  Elisha  Cook,  Esq.,  brother  of  his  former 
law-partner  in  ISTew  York.  Later,  he  was  the  senior 
member  of  the  law-firm  of  Bennett,  Machin  &  Owen;  and 
still  continues,  in  connection  with  the  last-named  gentle- 
man, the  practice  of  law. 

At  the  celebration  in  May,  1869,  of  the  completion 
of  the  Pacific  Railroad,  by  the  people  of  San  Francisco, 
Judge  Bennett  had  the  honorable  task  assigned  him  of 
delivering  the  oration  on  the  occasion.  In  grandeur  of 
thought,  splendor  of  diction,  and  beauty  of  expression, 
this  effort  will  compare  favorably  with  his  address  de- 
livered in  1850,  to  which  allusion  has  already  been  made. 
Thus,  it  will  be  seen,  the  name  of  Nathaniel  Bennett  will 
be  intimately  associated  through  coming  time  with  the 
history  of  the  two  grandest  events  which  in  his  age 
affected  the  interests  and  destinies  of  his  adopted  State. 

It  is  hardly  necessary  to  speak  of  Judge  Bonnet's  per- 
sonal qualities  or  professional  abilities.  He  is  known  by 
his  works.  An  able  bar  has  long  recognized  him  as  one 
of  the  first  of  .counselors  and  jurists.  He  is  a  scholar 
of  high  classical  and  scientific  attainments;  and  as  Poe 
said  of  Bryant,  ''His  soul  is  charity  itself,  in  all  respects 
generous  and  noble." 


NATHANIEL   BEXXETT.  553 


Delivered  at  the  Celebration  of  the  Admission  of  California  into  the  Union, 
Tuesday,  October  29th,  1850. 

BY  NATHANIEL  BENNETT. 

Fellow-citizens:  The  human  heart  is  never  in  repose.  One 
moment  it  is  oppressed  with  gloom;  another,  enlivened  withgayety. 
It  vibrates  unceasingly,  between  the  pangs  of  disappointment  and 
the  cheerful  excitement  of  gratified  desire.  These  varying  emotions 
sometimes  spring  from  individual  causes,  limited  in  then*  effects,  and 
rarely  extending  beyond  the  precincts  of  individual  interests;  at  other 
times,  their  sources  flow  from  some  great  national  blessing,  or  some 
great  national  calamity,  and  i^ervading  alike  all  portions  of  the  land, 
I)our  their  flood  of  sweet  or  of  bitter  w^aters  through  every  heart. 

A  few  weeks  ago  we  were  congregated  on  this  very  spot.  It  was 
a  day  of  mourning.*  The  head  of  the  nation  had  been  laid  low  in 
the  earth.  That  heart  which  beat  so  warmly  for  us  had  ceased  its 
friendly  throbs  in  the  embrace  of  death.  The  wave  of  sorrow  starting 
from  the  Atlantic  shores  of  the  continent,  and  gathering  accumulated 
force  in  its  progress,  had  just  burst  over  the  hills  and  valleys  of  Cali- 
fornia, and  its  solemn  murmurings  were  mingled  w^th  the  surge  of 
the  Pacific.  On  the  occasion  to  which  I  allude,  emblems  of  moui-ning 
saddened  our  sight.  The  pall,  the  hearse,  the  drapery  of  black,  the 
strains  of  martial  music  borne  upon  the  air  in  tones  of  woe,  and  the 
sad  thoughts  si^eaking  from  the  melancholy  countenances  of  the  vast 
assemblage — all  proclaimed  that  the  cherished  hopes  of  a  whole  nation 
had  been  smitten  down,  and  that  the  wail  of  a  nation's  anguish  was 
ascending  to  heaven. 

But  two  short  months  have  elapsed,  and  we  again  stand  upon  the 
same  spot.  But  how  changed  the  scene !  Cheerfulness  has  taken  the 
place  of  sadness.  Buoyancy  of  spirit  has  succeeded  to  despondency 
and  regret.  Badges  of  rejoicing  everywhere  greet  the  eye,  and  ac- 
clamations of  pleasure  salute  the  ear.  Amid  yon  forest  of  a  thousand 
masts,  innumerable  gay  pennants  and  signals  are  flung  to  the  breeze, 
in  token  that  the  sons  of  ocean,  equally  with  the  dwellers  upon 
land,  particij)ate  in  the  general  jubilee.  Banners  and  music,  as  of  a 
triumphing  army,  mingle  in  our  march.  The  deep  voices  of  a  hun- 
dred cannons  proclaim  our  congratulations.  Business  stands  still  in 
the  streets;  and  all  the  fair,  the  gay,  hoary -headed  age,  and  elastic 
youth,  and  vigorous  manhood,  have  gathered  here  to-day,  as  from  a 
strong  and  common  imjiulse,  to  testify,  in  this  imj)osing  manner, 
their  deep  and  abiding  joy  that  California  at  length  stands  an  equal 
among  her  sisters,  the  thirty-first  State  of  the  American  Union. 

At  any  time  this  would  have  been  a  source  of  hearty  congratula- 
tion.    Now^,  it  is  peculiarly  so.    For  months  had  we  waited  in  ^Dainful 

*  For  the  death  of  Gen.  Taylor. 


554  REPRESENT ATIVE    MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

anxiety,  at  o^e  moment  elated  and  again  depressed,  as  oach  sr.cces- 
sive  steamer  brought  tidings  of  the  prospect,  more  or  less  speedy, 
of  our  receiving  the  simple  justice  which  we  had  a  right  to  demand 
from  Congress.  And  our  anxiety  was  not  without  cause.  We  were 
placed  in  a  strange  and  anomalous  condition.  Possessing  within  our 
"borders  the  richest  mineral  region  of  the  world,  we  had  yet  but  a 
limited  control  over  it,  'and  Congress  had  neglected  to  provide  the 
necessary  regulations  for  the  extraction  of  its  treasures.  The  agri- 
cultural lands  of  our  valleys  were  left  to  lie  waste  in  consequence  of 
uncertainty  of  ownership,  and  of  doubt  as  to  their  ultimate  disposi- 
tion; and  no  provision  being  made  for  the  survey  of  government 
lands,  we  could  receive  the  benefit  of  no  preemption  laws,  and  could 
acquire  no  title  to  any  portion  of  the  national  domain  within  our 
limits.  We  had  a  State  government  regularly  organized  in  all  its 
departments,  with  powers  sufficiently  enlarged  to  enable  it  to  perform 
all  the  requisite  functions  of  a  State  government  under  the  federal 
constitution,  but  not  comprehensive  enough  to  subserve  the  pressing 
wants  of  an  independent  community.  With  a  great  maritime  com- 
merce, we  yet  had  no  admiralty  courts;  with  extensive  correspond- 
ence with  the  States  and  amongst  ourselves,  the  postal  facilities 
were  miserably  inadequate.  Paying  into  the  national  treasury  a 
tribute  more  than  sufficient  to  defray  the  expense  of  the  whole  mili- 
tary force  of  the  Union  in  this  State  and  in  Oregon,  and  the  whole 
naval  force  on  the  Pacific  station,  we  were  nevertheless  not  per- 
mitted to  enjoy  those  reciprocal  benefits  w^hich  alone  could  render 
such  enormous  taxation  even  tolerable.  We  were  thus  compelled  to 
sustain  the  burdens  of  government,  without  being  admitted  to  a  par- 
ticipation in  its  blessings.  We  were  taxed  without  representation; 
but  our  revolutionary  sires  resolved  that  taxation  and  representation 
should  go  hand  in  hand,  and  that  the  duty  should  not  be  enforced, 
unless  the  correlative  right  was  granted.  Claiming  to  be  a  State 
ourselves,  and  the  administration  of  every  department  of  our  gov- 
ernment being  based  upon  such  assumption,  we  were,  nevertheless, 
not  recognized  as  such  by  Congress,  and  could  not  have  been  so 
considered  by  the  federal  judiciary.  We  were  in  the  awkward  pre- 
dicament of  a  State  out  of  the  Union,  when  justice  dictated,  and 
imperious  necessity  demanded,  that  we  should  be  received  to  the 
enjoyment  of  the  privileges  of  a  State  in  the  Union.  W^e  stood 
alone  amongd  the  republican  family  of  Anglo-Americans,  whilst,  at 
the  same  time,  we  were  not  of  them.  In  addition  to  these  manifold 
sources  of  disquiet  in  our  midst,  there  w^ere  others  which  gave  rise 
to  no  less  aioprehension.  The  portentous  cloud  of  x^olitical  conten- 
tion had  gathered  over  our  heads,  and  party  strife  and  sectional 
animosity  hung,  like  lurid  balls,  on  thesMrtsof  our  eastern  horizon. 
Night  seemed  to  settle  upon  our  hopes.  Some  amongst  us  even  felt 
as  if  the  w^ave  of  necessity  must  drift  us  into  an  untried  and  danger- 
ous sea;  but  patriotism  still  stood  cabn  at  the  helm,  and  lioj^e  en- 
deavored to  pierce  the  thick  darkness  of  the  future.  It  way  at  such 
a  time  that  the  tidings  of  the  event  which  we  celebrate  reached  us; 
and  the  rebound  of  our  feelings  to-day  is  in  proportion  to  the  depth 


NATHANIEL    BENNETT.  555 

of  our  past  depression.  If,  when  tlie  tempest  has  gathered  over  the 
troubled  waters,  and  the  angry  billows,  lashed  into  furj%  rave  around 
the  devoted  bark,  the  winds  are  suddenly  lulled,  the  waves  hushed, 
and  the  warm  sunshine  again  sleeps  uj)on  the  bosom  of  the  tranquil 
sea,  the  thrill  of  delight  which  the  hardy  mariner  feels  is  enhanced 
by  the  recollection  of  the  imminent  dangers  from  which  he  has  just 
escaped. 

To  the  people  of  the  old  States  the  admission  of  a  new  one  has 
always  been  a  source  of  honest  pride.  They  behold  mth  gratifica- 
tion the  spread  of  the  empire  of  freemen;  and  their  welcome  voice 
has  always  been  heard  in  the  jDast,  as  in  gay  and  glittering  proces- 
sion, and  laden  with  varied  gifts,  State  after  State  has  gone  throng- 
ing up  for  admission  and  been  marshaled  into  the  lists  of  the 
Union.  How  then  could  it  be  otherwise,  when  California,  with  her 
robe  glowing  with  silver  and  a  diadem  of  gold  upon  her  brow,  had 
so  long  and  patiently  waited  for  the  privilege  of  being  allowed  to 
participate  mth  her  elder  sisterhood  in  their  hopes  and  fears,  to 
share  with  them  the  common  benefits  and  sustain  her  portion  of  the 
common  bui'dens.  The  numerous  manifestations  of  kindly  feelings 
from  our  brethren  of  the  East  prove  that  their  satisfaction  is  inferior 
only  to  our  own — that  they  receive  us  into  their  embrace  with  sincere 
friendship,  and  with  warm  wishes  for  our  continued  prosperity  and 
permanent  welfare.  The  notes  of  their  rejoicing  at  the  consumma- 
tion of  our  mutual  wishes  have  not  ceased  to  reverberate,  when 
California  "takes  up  the  strain ;  and  in  tones  not  less  sincere  and 
perhaj)s  even  more  heartfelt,  sends  back  to  her  elder  sisters  a  pledge 
that  she  will  never  disgrace  that  Union  into  which  she  has  been  re- 
ceived, but  will  for  ever  continue  to  revere  and  cherish  it,  not 
merely  as  the  highest  honor  to  herself,  but  as  a  guaranty  of  bless- 
ings to  the  human  race.  This  is  due  not  only  to  herself,  to  the 
Union,  and  to  humanity,  but  is  doubly  due  to  her  friends,  who, 
whether  in  private  life,  in  the  Legislatures  of  the  respective  States, 
or  in  the  national  councils,  have  defended  her  character  from  the 
false  and  impudent  aspersions  which  have  been  cast  upon  it  even 
in  high  places,  and  have  asserted  her  rights  with  unfaltering  zeal 
and  determined  boldness.  To  all  such,  it  would  be  ungrateful  did 
we  not  remember  them  in  this  the  day  of  our  triumph,  and  return 
them  our  hearty  thanks,  and  assure  them  that  the  pledge  they  gave 
of  our  attachment  to  the  Union  was  well  founded.  Indeed,  it  is 
impossible  that  the  people  of  California  should  be  otherwise  than 
devoted  to  the  Union.  They  are  not  outcasts,  whom  an  over- 
populous  society  has  thrown  from  its  bosom  in  order  to  secure  the 
means  of  subsistence  for  the  rest.  They  are  not  criminals,  fleeing 
from  punishment  for  transgi'ession  of  law.  They  are  not  drones, 
whom  an  industrious  community  has  chased  from  the  common  hive. 
They  do  not  consist  of  the  vicious  and  idle,  who  were  incajjable  of 
procuring  an  honest  competency  upon  their  native  soil.  They  are 
not  the  ignorant,  banished  by  superior  knowledge  and  "talents  and 
attainments  from  the  refinements  of  civilized  life.  Such  as  these 
would  scarcely  have  had  the  energy  to  undertake,  or  the  persever- 


556  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

ance  or  ability  to  accomplish,  a  journey  to  this  remote  region.  They 
do  consist  of  the  industrious  laborer,  the  independent  mechanic,  the 
shrewd  and  intelligent  merchant,  the  skillful  physician,  the  learned 
lawyer,  and  the  pious  divine.  They  embrace  as  much  of  enterprise, 
as  much  of  intelligence  and  learning,  as  much  of  business  skill  and 
capacity,  as  much  of  morality  and  love  of  good  order,  as  any  other 
community  of  equal  numbers  under  the  sun.  They  possess,  in  a 
higher  degree  than  can  be  found  anywhere  else,  the  peculiar  char- 
acteristics of  Americans;  an  energy  that  never  flags,  and  an  in- 
domitable resolution  in  surmounting  all  obstacles.  They  have  not 
come  from  one  State,  nor  from  one  section  of  the  Union,  but  from 
all.  East  and  West,  North  and  South,  almost  every  county  and  city, 
and  village  and  town,  of  each  of  the  thirty  old  States,  have  their 
representatives  in  our  midst,  identified  with  our  weal  or  our  woe. 
Nay,  there  "are  but  few  families  in  the  Eastern  States  whose  blood 
does  not  flow,  either  directly  or  collaterally,  through  the  veins  of 
some  citizen  of  California.  How,  then,  is  it  possible  that  we  should 
not  feel  a  deep  interest  in  the  preservation  and  perpetuity  of  the 
Union?  And  how  is  it  possible  that  the  welfare  of  California  should 
not  be  bound,  more  closely  than  with  links  of  steel,  to  the  hearts  of 
the  whole  American  people?  The  electric  chains  of  human  sym- 
pathy, from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific,  and  from  the  Pacific  to  the 
Atlantic,  stretching  across  the  wide  interval  of  mountain  and  plain, 
not  a  link  weakened  nor  its  brightness  dimmed  or  tarnished  by  dis- 
tance, must  for  ever  bind  the  two  portions  of  our  common  country 
indissolubly  together.  These  are  bonds  of  aftection  stronger  than 
ties  of  mere  political  connection,  and  they  can  never  be  severed  by 
sectional  jealousies,  nor  by  the  mad  schemes  of  disappointed  am- 
bition. Wherever,  then,  the  Union  may  be  disparagingly  spoken 
of  or  sneeringly  scoffed  at — on  whatever  spot  our  national  banner, 
which  floats  so  gallantly  in  war  and  so  grticefully  in  peace,  may  be 
trailed  on  the  ground,  and  its  glorious  folds  ignominiously  trampled 
in  the  dust — California  will  never  lift  a  sacrilegious  hand  to  sever 
the  common  ties  of  interest,  of  friendship,  and  of  kindred — she  will, 
to  the  last,  cling  to  the  Union,  not  merely  as  the  plank  of  her  safety, 
but  as  the  ark  freighted  with  her  brightest  hopes  for  the  future  and 
her  holiest  remembrances  of  the  past. 

And  who  is  there  amongst  us  but  feels  proud  that  he  is  a  member 
of  this  grand  confederacy  of  freemen?  Who  would  wish  to  sever 
his  earliest  patriotic  impulses  and  associations,  and  form  unto  him- 
self new  and  strange  gods?  Who  would  choose  to  forget  the  warm 
impressions  of  youth,  when  his  ear  first  caught  the  strains  of  our 
martial  music  and  his  eye  learned  to  look  with  pride  upon  the 
emblem  of  our  national  power  and  glory,  as  it  was  flung  to  the 
breeze  of  his  native  hills?  Let  us  indulge  the  anticipation  that  the 
patriotic  hopes  which  stirred  the  breast  of  childhood,  which  inspired 
the  heart  of  youth,  and  which  cheer  the  toils  and  struggles  of  man- 
hood, may  quicken  the  languid  pulse  of  old  age;  and  that  Time, 
who,  in  his  never-ceasing  and  yet  imperceptible  course,  gradually 
and  silently  steals  away,  one  by  one,  the  impiilses  of  early  years, 


NATHANIEL    BENNETT.  657 

♦ 

may,  even  at  three  score  and  ten,  leave  untouched  the  thrill  of  en- 
thusiasm at  the  sound  of  our  national  anthems  and  the  sight  of  our 
national  flag. 

And  is  not  our  country  worthy  of  our  sentiments  of  veneration 
and  love?  Not  two  centuries  and  a  half  have  elapsed  since  our  race 
first  planted  their  steps  on  American  soil.  Only  three  quarters  of  a 
century — a  period  which,  though  conducting  the  individual  man  to 
old  age,  is  but  a  day  in  the  history  of  a  nation's  existence — have 
passed  away,  since  we  took  our  place  amongst  the  powers  of  the 
earth  as  a  distinct  and  independent  nation ;  and  yet,  during  that 
brief  period,  we  have  made  advances  in  national  greatness  which 
have  required  with  other  people  the  struggle  of  centuries  to  achieve. 
The  sparse  population  scattered  at  wide  intervals  along  the  Atlantic 
coast  has  grown  to  an  empire  of  twenty  millions.  The  thirteen 
States  which  formed  the  Constitution  have  been  multiphed  to  thirty- 
one.  The  narrow  belt  of  American  civilization  on  the  eastern  slope 
of  the  Alleghanies  has  been  constantly  growing  wider  and  wider, 
and  pushing  its  bounds  farther  and  farther.  It  has  crossed  the 
Sabine  on  the  south  and  the  Mississippi  on  the  west.  It  has 
ascended  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  the  snow-capped  summits  of 
the  Sierra  Nevada  have  been  no  impediment  in  its  course.  At  length 
it  laves  its  feet  in  the  waters  of  the  Pacific.  It  spans  the  entire  con- 
tinent, and  the  base  of  its  arch  rests  on  the  shores  of  both  oceans. 
We  have  a  frontier  line  of  eleven  thousand  miles;  a  sea  coast  of  up- 
wards of  six  thousand;  a  lake  coast  of  more  than  two  thousand. 
We  have  rivers  twice  as  long  as  the  Danube,  the  largest  river  in 
Europe,  and  bayous  and  creeks  that  shame  the  Thames  and  the 
Seine.  We  have  single  States  larger  than  the  United  Kingdom  of 
Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  and  harbors  that  would  hold  all  the 
navies  of  Europe.  From  Maine  to  New  Orleans,  or  from  Washing- 
ton to  San  Francisco,  is  farther  than  from  London  to  Constanti- 
nople— a  route  that  crosses  England,  Belgium,  Prussia,  Germany, 
Austria,  and  Turkey. 

It  would  seem  that  the  progress  of  our  institutions  westward  was 
at  length  effectually  closed  by  the  ocean.  But  it  may  be  we  mis- 
calculated even  here.  The  peaceful  islands  of  the  sea,  which  yield 
their  spontaneous  productions  without  toil,  with  a  climate  as  if 
tempered  for  the  abode  of  the  gods,  where  to  live  is  pleasure  and 
to  breathe  the  pure  air  is  bliss — it  may  be  that  in  the  lapse  of  time 
they  will  occupy  the  j)osition  which  California  now  occupies,  and 
become  to  the  American  people  what  we  are  now  to  the  Eastern 
States.  Nay,  further:  the  vast  continent  which  lies  beyond,  teeming 
with  millions  of  semi-civilized  inhabitants,  and  reeling  under  the 
heat  of  a  tropical  sun,  may  j^et  yield  to  the  influence  of  American 
institutions,  and  repose  beneath  the  shelter  of  American  freedom. 
Empire  is  born,  increases,  wanes:  its  course  hitherto  has  been  west- 
ward; and  it  is  not  impossible  that  in  the  revolving  cycle  of  ages, 
the  seat  of  the  last  great  empire  may  be  on  the  very  spot  of  the  origin 
of  the  first,  and  the  plains  trodden  by  the  Chaldean  and  Assyrian 
despot  may  echo  the  songs  of  American  liberty. 


558  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

While  we  would  by  no  means  urge  the  spirit  of  conquest,  so  rife 
amongst  our  people,  but  would  use  all  legitimate  measures  to  repress 
it,  yet  when  the  field  is  ripe,  we  would  not  neglect  the  harvest 
through  fear  that  our  garners  will  overflow.  We  are  not  amongst 
those  who  believe  that,  because  former  republics  and  kingdoms  have 
gone  to  wreck  when  their  territory  became  extended,  and  perhaps 
for  that  reason  alone,  the  same  result  must  necessarily  or  will  proba- 
bly attend  our  system  also.  It  may  perhaps  be  deemed  rashness 
and  a  disregard  of  the  teachings  of  experience,  when  we  declare 
that  the  examples  so  often  cited  of  Greece  and  Kome,  and  Italian 
Republics,  thrust  forward  as  Procrustean  beds,  to  the  dimensions  of 
which  our  republic  must  be  cramped,  have  but  little  weight  upon 
our  mind.  Their  forms  of  government,  the  condition  of  civilization 
and  intelligence  amongst  their  people,  and  above  all  the  great  in- 
ventions of  modern  days,  unknown  to  them,  render  any  such  com- 
parison inappropriate. 

The  advancement  of  jj^olitical  knowledge  and  its  reduction  to 
practice;  the  discoveries  in  the  laws  of  the  physical  world,  and  their 
application  in  a  thousand  ways  to  machinery,  which  characterize  the 
present  age ;  have  rendered  valueless  the  political  theories  and  maxims 
and  principles  and  practice  of  ancient  States.  Steam,  applied  to  the 
propulsion  of  vessels  and  railroad  cars,  has  brought  the  remote  sec- 
tions of  our  country  into  close  proximity.  Forty  years  ago,  Cincin- 
nati was  a  month's  journey  farther  from  New  Orleans  than  San 
Francisco  is  now.  It  then  required  months  to  ascend  the  Mississippi, 
where  it  now  requires  days.  Intelligence  fhes  on  the  wings  of  light- 
ning, with  the  rapidity  of  thought.  The  magnetic  telegraph  whispers 
as  readily  and  distinctly  at  the  distance  of  two  thousand  miles  as  at 
the  distance  of  two  feet.  In  point  of  rapidity  of  intelligence, 
Washington  is  as  near  to  New  Orleans  as  to  New  York,  and  with  a 
telegraph  from  San  Francisco  to  the  seat  of  government,  she  would 
be  as  near  to  the  Capital  as  either.  The  universal  intelligence  of  our 
people,  amongst  whom  all  read  and  think,  and  to  theoretical  knowl- 
edge add  practical  experience  in  matters  of  government,  is  another 
strong  safeguard,  unknown  in  other  nations,  against  danger  from  the 
expansion  of  our  territory. 

Again,  another  great  and  distinctive  feature  of  our  system,  which 
renders  inapt  the  comparison  of  all  former  systems,  is  the  division 
of  powers  between  the  federal  government  and  the  local  govern- 
ments of  the  respective  States — whereby  the  former,  acting  within 
the  scope  of  its  limited  powers,  controls  the  general  interests  of  the 
whole,  and  provides  such  measures  as  concern  the  welfare  of  all 
portions  alike;  whilst  the  latter  attend  to  the  distinct  wants  of  their 
own  separate  communities,  and  prescribe  such  laws  as  suit  the  pecu- 
liarities of  climate,  people,  manners,  and  institutions  of  their  re- 
spective States,  but  which  might  not  be  of  a  common  utility  to  all. 
Thus  the  one  portion  of  our  system  is  indispensable  to  the  perfec- 
tion of  the  other.  If  all  the  powers  of  legislation  and  government 
over  the  general  interests  of  the  nation,  as  well  as  over  the  minute 
local  affairs  of  the  different  sections,  were  entrusted  to  Congi-ess, 


NATHANIEL   BENNETT.  659 

then  it  might  with  reason  be  feared  that  the  diversified  wants  of  the 
various  portions  of  the  country  could  not  be  adequately  jDrovided 
for,  and  that  secession  or  revolution  might  be  the  result.  But  with 
the  Federal  government  and  the  respective  State  governments  re- 
volving each  in  its  appropriate  sphere,  we  see  no  reason  why  our 
system  is  not  as  well  adapted  to  the  government  of  the  whole  con- 
tinent as  it  was  to  the  government  of  the  original  thirteen  States. 
It  is  the  mutual  adaptation,  each  to  the  other,  of  all  the  difi'erent 
parts  of  our  system  which,  as  is  the  case  with  the  harmonious  ad- 
justment of  the  planets,  attracts  and  restrains  each  in  its  appointed 
orbit,  and  impels  the  whole,  without  confusion  or  discord,  around 
the  common  centre.  We  see  but  little  danger  of  a  disruption  of  the 
Union  merely  on  account  of  its  extent.  Other  causes  may  operate 
to  produce  that  result,  but  of  them  it  is  not  our  province  now  to 
speak. 

Californians,  natives  of  the  soil!  such  is  the  nation,  its  progress 
in  the  past  and  its  prospects  for  the  future,  which  you  have  chosen 
to  adopt  for  your  country.  You  and  ourselves  stand  on  common 
ground.  Born  and  reared  under  different  governments,  and  speak- 
ing different  tongues,  we  nevertheless  meet  here  to-day  as  brothers. 
The  same  fraternal  roof  shelters  us  all.  The  segis  of  the  Constitu- 
tion guards  and  protects  us  alike.  Though  you  have  been  severed 
from  the  parent  tree,  your  strength  is  not  sapped  nor  your  leaves 
withered;  but,  grafted  into  a  strange  branch,  you  nevertheless 
spring  forth  with  more  than  former  vigor,  and  flouiish  with  fresh 
and  unwonted  luximance.  Subject  to  no  other  restraints  than  our- 
selves, cherished  by  the  same  beneficent  laws,  enjopng  the  same 
rights,  political,  civil,  and  religious,  you  stand  amongst  us  in  all 
respects  our  equals:  than  this  we  can  say  no  more,  for  we  acknow- 
ledge no  superiors.  Henceforth,  notwitlistanding  difference  of 
origin  and  perchance  diversity  of  sentiments,  you  and  ourselves  and 
our  posterity,  through  all  coming  time,  are  inseparably  united, 
whether  in  haj^piness  or  in  misery.  Hencefoi*th,  our  fortunes  are 
embarked  on  the  same  voyage  and  destined  for  the  same  port. 
Henceforth,  we  kneel  at  the  same  political  shrine,  are  charged  vvith 
the  same  protection  of  our  common  institutions,  and  are  bound  by 
the  same  holy  ties  to  fan  the  flame  of  liberty  and  keep  its  sacred  fires 
for  ever  burning^upon  the  altar  of  our  common  country.  Henceforth, 
we  have  one  country,  one  hope,  one  destiny.  Your  hearty  participa- 
tion in  the  joyful  event  v/hich  we  celebrate  in  common  to-day  gives 
abundant  evidence  that  if  the  day  of  trial  shall  ever  come,  when  the 
fountains  of  the  political  deep  shall  be  broken  up,  and  discord  rule 
the  hour,  you  will  be  found  standing  shoulder  to  shoulder  with  our- 
selves, putting  forth  all  your  exertions  in  maintenance  of  the  laws 
which  vv'C  cherish  and  in  support  of  the  constitution  which  we  revere. 

Fellow-citizens:  we  are  at  length  fairly  launched  uj)on  our  course. 
With  a  State  constitution  approved  by  the  convention  unanimously, 
and  adopted  by  the  people  with  scarcely  a  dissenting  voice — a  con- 
stitution guaranteeing  freedom  to  all,  favoring  none,  and  bringing  all 
the  officers  of  the  State  under  immediate  responsibility  to  the  people, 


660  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

there  is  no  reason  to  doubt  our  eminent  success.  Judging  from  the 
past,  what  have  we  not  a  right  to  expect  in  the  future.  The  world 
has  never  witnessed  any  thing  equal  or  similar  to  our  career  hitherto. 
Scarcely  two  years  ago,  California  was  almost  an  unoccupied  wild. 
"With  the  exception  of  a  presidio,  a  mission,  a  j)ueblo,  or  a  lonely 
ranch,  scattered  here  and  there  at  tiresome  distances,  there  v/as 
nothing  to  show  that  the  uniform  stillness  had  ever  been  broken  by 
the  footsteps  of  civilized  man.  The  agricultural  richness  of  her 
valleys  remained  unimproved,  and  the  wealth  of  a  Vvorld  lay  en- 
tombed in  the  bosom  of  her  solitary  mountains,  and  on  the  banks  cf 
her  unexplored  streams.  Behold  the  contrast!  The  hand  of  agri- 
culture is  now  busy  in  every  fertile  valley,  and  its  toils  are  re- 
munerated with  rewards  which  in  no  other  portion  of  the  world 
can  be  credited.  Enterprise  has  pierced  every  hill  for  hidden 
treasure,  and  has  heaped  up  enormous  gains.  Cities  and  villages 
dot  the  surface  of  the  whole  State.  Steamers  dart  along  our  rivers, 
and  innumerable  vessels  spread  their  white  wings  over  our  bays. 
Not  Constantinople,  upon  which  the  wealth  of  imperial  Borne  was 
lavished,  not  St.  Petersburg,  to  found  which  the  arbitrary  power  of 
the  Czar  sacrificed  thousands  of  his  subjects,  could  rival,  in  rapidity 
of  growth,  the  fair  city  which  lies  before  us.  Our  State  is  a  marv^el 
to  ourselves,  and  a  miracle  to  the  rest  of  the  world.  Nor  is  the  in- 
fluence of  California  confined  within  her  own  borders.  Mexico,  and 
the  islands  nestled  in  the  embrace  of  the  Pacific,  have  felt  the  quicken- 
ing breath  of  her  enterprise.  With  her  golden  wand  she  has  touched 
the  prostrate  corpse  of  South  American  industry,  and  it  has  sprung 
up  in  the  freshness  of  life.  She  has  caused  the  hum  of  busy  life  to 
be  heard  in  the  wilderness  "where  rolls  the  Oregon,"  and  where  undl 
recently  was  heard  ' '  no  sound  save  his  own  dashings."  Even  the  wall 
of  Chinese  exclusivenesshas  been  broken  down,  and  the  children  of  the 
sun  have  come  forth  to  view  the  splendor  of  her  achievements.  But 
flattering  as  has  been  the  past,  satisfactory  as  is  the  present,  it  is  but 
a  foretaste  of  the  future.  It  is  a  trite  saying  that  we  live  in  an  age 
of  great  events.  Nothing  can  be  more  true.  But  the  greatest  of  all 
events  of  the  present  age  is  at  hand.  It  needs  not  the  gift  of  prophecy 
to  predict  that  the  world's  trade  is  destined  soon  to  be  changed. 
But  a  few  years  can  elapse  before  the  commerce  of  Asia  and  the 
islands  of  the  Pacific,  instead  of  pursuing  the  ocean  track  byway  of 
Cape  Horn  or  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  or  even  taking  the  shorter 
route  of  the  Isthmus  of  Darienor  the  Isthmus  of  Tehuantepec,  will 
enter  the  Golden  Gate  of  California,  and  deposit  its  riches  in  the  lap 
of  our  own  city.  Hence,  on  bars  of  iron  and  propelled  by  steam,  it 
will  ascend  the  mountains  and  traverse  the  desert,  and  having  again 
reached  the  confines  of  civilization,  will  be  distributed  through  a 
thousand  channels  to  every  portion  of  the  Union  and  of  Europe. 
New  York  will  then  become  what  London  now  is,  the  great  central 
point  of  exchange — the  heart  of  trade — the  force  of  whose  contraction 
and  expansion  will  be  felt  throughout  every  artery  of  the  commercial 
world;  and  San  Francisco  will  then  stand  the  second  city  of  America. 
Is  this  visionary?    Twenty  years  will  determine. 


NATHANIEL   BENNETT.  561 

"Witli  all  these  elements  of  wealth  in  our  midst,  with  this  ex- 
perience of  the  past  and  these  prospects  for  the  future,  it  would  be 
madness  should  we  prove  false  to  ourselves  in  the  career  upon  which 
we  have  but  just  entered.  Let  us  hope  that  the  foundations  of  our 
State  g-overnment  are  wisely  and  skillfully  laid,  and  let  us  endeavor 
to  rear  a  superstructure  thereon  which  shall  prove  worthy  of  the 
high  destiny  to  which  we  are  called.  The  responsibility  rests  upon 
us  whether  this  first  American  State  on  the  Pacific  shall,  in  youth  and 
ripe  manhood,  realize  the  promise  of  infancy.  We  may,  by  unwise 
legislation,  by  unhappy  dissensions,  by  maladministration,  cramp 
her  energies  and  distort  her  form,  or  we  may  make  her  a  rival  even  of 
the  Emjoire  State  of  the  Atlantic.  The  best  wishes  of  Americans 
are  with  us — they  expect  that  the  fortunate  past  will  prove  but  the 
harbinger  of  a  still  more  glorious  future;  that  the  Herculean  youth 
will  grow  to  a  Titan  in  his  manhood.  The  world  is  interested  in  our 
success,  for  a  fresh  field  is  open  to  its  commerce,  and  a  new  avenue 
to  the  civilization  and  progress  of  the  human  race.  Let  us  then  en- 
deavor to  realize  the  hopes  of  America  and  the  expectations  of  the 
world.  Let  us  not  only  be  united  amongst  ourselves  for  our  own 
local  welfare,  but  let  us  strive  to  cement  the  common  bonds  of 
brotherhood  of  the  whole  Union.  In  our  relations  to  the  federal 
government  let  us  know  no  South,  no  North,  no  East,  no  West : 
wherever  American  liberty  flourishes,  let  that  be  our  common  coun- 
try— wherever  the  American  banner  waves,  let  that  be  our  home. 

36 


JAMES  KING  OF  WM.* 


JAMES  King  of  Wm.  will  always  be  a  prominent  and 
honored  name  in  the  history  of  California,  and  espec- 
ially in  the  annals  of  its  chief  city.  His  was  the  head  that 
planned  the  regeneration  of  California  society,  the  heart 
that  periled  life  to  achieve  it.  From  his  assassination,  as 
from  the  blood  of  a  martyr,  sprang  a  great  political  and  so- 
cial movement,  or  revolution,  as  it  may  be  better  termed,  in 
San  Francisco.  That  solemn  and  irresistible  rising  of  the 
masses  for  virtual  liberty,  will  be  recorded  by  the  histo- 
rian, and  pointed  out  by  statesmen  and  by  philosophers 
as  one  of  the  most  signal  and  instructive  triumphs  of  an 
outraged  people  over  men  who  had  long  violated  the  right 
of  suffrage,  usurped  the  powers  of  government,  made  the 
Constitution  and  law  a  farce,  and  polluted  public  mor- 
als. His  life  how  short,  yet  how  eventful!  He  beheld 
San  Francisco  rise  like  Venice,  ''a  sea  Cybele,  fresh  from 
ocean."  In  1851,  he  beheld  it  the  abode  of  crime,  and 
was  among  the  earliest  and  most  effective  of  those  who 
formed  the  celebrated  Vigilance  Committee  in  that  year. 
But  he  never  violated  the  laws  of  his  country,  and  was 
always  ready  to  uphold  them  even  at  the  risk  of  his  life. 
Many  members  of  the  old  Committee  remember  how  man- 
fully he  interceded  for  a  suspected  prisoner,  before  that 
body,  and  actually  armed  himself  to  defend  him — believ- 
ing that  none  but  the  vicious  should  be  accused,  and  none 
but  the  guilty  punished. 

Who  can  forget  his  holy  wars  ?     No  crusader  ever  en- 
gaged Mus§ulman  beneath  the  walls  of  Jerusalem  with 

*  For  explanatory  note,  see  Preface. 


564  REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

sterner  resolution  or  more  glorious  chivalry,  than  he  did 
the  dastardly  pests  who  for  years  had  hovered  like  carrion 
crows  over  the  decomposing  elements  of  California  soci- 
ety. No  Kentucky  rifleman  ever  sent  the  death  messen- 
ger with  an  aim  so  sure  as  his,  when,  with  steady  nerve 
and  fixed  eye,  he  discharged  the  terrors  of  his  pen  at  vil- 
lainy, vice  and  corruption.  There  was  no  blanching  in 
his  features ;  no  quailing  in  his  heart.  He  knew  wxll  the 
dangers  that  surrounded  him,  but,  inspired  by  the  justice 
of  his  cause,  he  despised  them  all. 

James  King  was  born  at  Georgetown,  District  of  Co- 
lumbia, on  the  28th  day  of  January,  1822.  He  was  of 
respectable  parentage,  and  was  one  of  the  youngest  of  a 
numerous  family.  His  father  died  in  June,  1854,  at  the 
ripe  age  of  eighty-three  years.  Mr.  King  received  a  lib- 
eral education,  and  proved  himself  an  apt  scholar.  To 
the  last  of  his  life  he  was  a  student,  eagerly  seeking  knowl- 
edge of  every  kind  wherever  it  could  be  found.  He  had 
a  fair  acquaintance  with  the  Latin  classics,  and  was  well 
read  in  the  best  English  and  American  writers.  In  later 
years,  he  spoke  fluently  the  French  and  Spanish  lan- 
guages, and  was  moderately  acquainted  with  the  German. 
About  the  age  of  sixteen  he  assumed  the  term  ^'of  Wm.," 
which  was  found  to  be  necessary  in  order  to  distinguish 
him  from  a  number  of  other  James  Kings  then  living 
at  Georgetown.  William  was  his  father's  name.  Some 
men  distinguish  themselves  from  others  of  the  same  name 
by  using  the  word  '^ senior"  or  '^ junior,"  ''1st,"  "2d," 
and  so  on.  The  same  end  was  obtained,  in  this  instance, 
by  adopting  the  affix  of  ''Wm."  It  is  a  custom  in  some 
parts  of  the  United  States,  and  particularly  in  Maryland, 
thus  to  take  the  father's  given  name  as  a  portion  of  the 
son's. 

When  about  fifteen  years  old,  in  1837,  Mr.  King  left 
the  parental  home  to  push  his  fortune.  He  went  first  to 
Pittsburgh,  where  he  remained  a  twelvemonth,  as  clerk 
in  a  store.  Afterwards  he  proceeded  to  Berrien  and  St. 
Josephs,  Michigan,  at  each  of  which  places  he  stayed  a 
short  time.  Towards  the  close  of  1838,  becoming  sick  of 
fever  and  ague,  he  returned  to  Georgetown.     The  next 


JAMES  KING   OF   WM.  565 

year  he  entered  the  Post  Office  there,  as  a  clerk,  where 
he  served  a  few  months.  In  the  fall  of  1839-40,  during 
the  Presidential  contest  between  Mr.  Van  Buren  and  Gen- 
eral Harrison,  Mr.  King  (now  ''of  Wm.")  became  con- 
nected with  Kendall's  Expositor^  a  Democratic  campaign 
j)aper.  His  connection  with  that  journal  lasted  for  half  a 
year,  after  which  period  he  engaged  for  a  few  months  on 
the  Washington  Globe.  In  1841,  he  entered,  as  book- 
keeper, the  banking  establishment  of  Messrs.  Corcoran 
k  Riggs,  bankers  in  Washington.  He  remained  in  the 
employment  of  these  gentlemen  till  1848,  w^hen  he  de- 
termined to  migrate  to  California.  He  was  married  in 
1843  to  Miss  Charlotte  M.  Libbey,  of  Georgetown.  About 
the  time  of  Mr.  JKing's  departure  for  California,  a  gentle- 
man who  now  resides  in  San  Francisco  called  upon 
Messrs.  Corcoran  k  Riggs,  and  asked  the  latter  what  he 
thought  of  Mr.  King.  ''He  is  a  very  clever,  steady  sort 
of  a  man,"  said  Mr.  Riggs;  ^^lut  Idoii!t  believe  he  will  ever 
set  the  Pacific  onjirey 

When  Mr.  King  resolved  to  emigrate,  the  gold  discov- 
eries of  California  had  not  been  made,  or,  rather,  the 
news  of  them  had  not  yet  reached  the  Atlantic  border. 
An  elder  brother,  who  had  been  engaged  in  Col.  Fre- 
mont's expedition  across  the  Rocky  Mountains,  had 
visited  California  in  1846,  and  had  subsequently  filled 
the  mind  of  Mr.  King  with  glowing  prospects  of  the 
future  greatness  of  the  country.  This  brother  was  also 
in  the  expedition  of  Col.  Fremont  in  1848;  and  it  was  to 
meet  him  in  San  Francisco,  in  order  that  they  might  en- 
ter into  business  together,  that  Mr.  King  sought  the 
shores  of  the  Pacific.  Unhappily,  the  brother  perished 
during  Fremont's  disastrous  trip  of  the  year  last  men- 
tioned. Mr.  King  left  Washington  in  May,  1848,  and  an 
extract  from  a  letter  written  to  him  by  his  brother  while 
he  was  in  I^ew  York  waiting  for  the  vessel  to  sail,  shows 
the  condition  of  things  in  California,  immediately  after 
the  Mexican  war.     He  writes; 

''You  must  recollect  that  society  is  not  formed  yet  properly 
in  California,  and  as  the  population  increases  they  will  gradually 
form  laws,  adapted  to  their  own  peculiar  circumstances.     I  think  it 


5G6  REPRESENTATIVE   .AIEN    OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

Avould  he  well  to  inform  yourself  of  the  situation  of  the  country  and 
of  the  rights  of  the  people,  for  as  soon  as  the  treaty  is  ratified,  pub- 
lic attention  there  will  be  at  once  turned  to  the  establishment  of  a 
civil  government. "  ^h  *  *  j  think  it  would  be  best  to  invest 
your  money,  or  a  portion  of  it,  in  a  good  rancho,  and  if  you  can 
purchase  Joachim  Estrada's,  near  the  mission  of  St.  Louis  Obispo 
anyways  reasonable,  with  the  stock,  do  it  by  all  means.  Only  have 
the  title  examined.  This  last  advice  I  give  upon  the  supposition 
that  you  would  like  an  agricultural  life.  If  you  can  bu}^  a  lot  or  a 
few  yards  of  the  Quicksilver  mine  you  had  better  do  it.  The  best 
one  is  about  six  miles  from  the  Puebla  San  Jos-i,  near  Mr.  Cooke's 
rancho.  If  you  travel  by  land  between  San  Francisco  and  Monte- 
rey, you  will  pass  through  San  Jose,  and  it  is  but  a  short  ride  to  the 
mine.     Visit  it  by  all  means  if  you  are  in  the  neighborhood." 

He  left  New  York  on  the  24th  of  May,  1848,  and  in 
due  time  reached  and  crossed  the  Isthmas  of  Panama. 
From  thence  he  could  find  no  opportunity  of  proceeding 
direct  to  California.  He  accordingly  sailed  to  Valpa- 
raiso, with  the  view  of  getting  a  vessel  there  bound  for 
California. 

The  news  of  the  gold  discoveries  had  by  this  time 
reached  Chile.  He  was  ready  to  make  the  best  use  of  the 
startling  intelligence.  He  purchased  some  goods  at  Val- 
paraiso, and  hired  nine  Chilenos  to  proceed  with  him  to 
the  mines  in  California,  and  work  for  him  for  a  specified 
time  at  fixed  wages. 

He  reached  San  Francisco,  November  10th,  1848, 
when  every  body  in  the  place  was  in  a  fever  of  excite- 
ment. Six  of  the  Chilenos  immediately  deserted  him. 
With  the  three  who  remained  he  hastened  to  Hangtown, 
now  called  Placerville,  and  commenced  mining.  In  three 
weeks  time  he  found  gold  enough  to  pay  all  the  expenses 
of  his  original  large  party  from  Valparaiso.  Afterwards 
he  went  to  Sacramento,  and  engaged  in  business  with  the 
mercantile  firm  of  Messrs.  Hensley,  Reading  k  Co.  He 
could  not,  however,  be  satisfied,  while  so  fair  an  opening 
presented  itself  for  the  exercise  of  his  proper  profession 
of  banking.  In  July  of  the  same  year  he  sacrificed  large 
pecuniary  interests  which  he  had  acquired  in  business, 
and  left  for  the  East  to  make  corresponding  arrange- 
ments there  for  the  banking  establishment  which  he  pro- 
posed to  form.     He  speedilv  returned  to  California,  and 


JAMES  KING   OF   WM.  567 

on  December  5th,  1849,  opened  a  bank  in  San  Francisco, 
in  a  small  frame  building  on  Montgomery  street,  between 
Clay  and  Merchant  streets,  under  the  name  of  James 
King  of  Wm.  This  was  one  of  the  earliest  banking 
houses  in  the  city.  Afterwards  he  built  the  brick  buikl- 
ing  at  the  southwest  corner  of  Montgomery  and  Connner- 
cial  streets,  which  was  long  known  as  his  banking  house. 
Mr.  King  was  widely  known  as  a  banker  over  the 
whole  State.  He  long  carried  on  an  extensive  and  lucra- 
tive business,  and  was  universally  respected  as  a  man  of 
the  strictest  integrity  and  the  highest  moral  vrorth.  His 
presence  was  an  ornament  to  society,  his  friendship  a 
prize  which  good  men  rejoiced  to  possess,  and  his  joersonal 
acquaintance  esteemed  an  honor  by  the  most  intellectual 
and  influential  persons.  He  was  straightforward,  earnest, 
practical  and  intelligent  in  all  things.  His  wife,  and  their 
family  of  four  children,  rejoined  him  in  1851,  and  hence- 
forth San  Francisco  became  their  home.  He  continued  in 
the  banking  business  until  June,  1854.  He  had  made  so 
large  profits  in  it  that  about  the  middle  of  1853  he  esti- 
mated his  clear  means  at  a  quarter  of  a  million  of  dollars. 
But  riches  take  wings  and  flee  away.  He  had  entrusted 
large  sums  to  a  person  to  buy  gold  dust  in  the  interior 
for  him,  when  the  agent,  without  his  principal's  consent 
or  knowledge,  invested  the  monies  in  a  mining  water 
stock.  This  unexpected  speculation  turned  out  ill.  In 
the  attempt  to  save  some  part  of  the  original  expenditure, 
Mr.  King  was  induced  to  venture  a  great  deal  more  money 
in  the  same  stock,  amounting  in  the  end  to  about  $100,- 
000.  All  this  proved  a  total  loss  to  him.  This  unfor- 
tunate investment,  and  the  depreciation  of  other  stocks 
in  which  he  was  interested,  induced  him  to  close  his 
bank.  He  did  not/ai/,  however,  for  he  sacrificed  all  that 
he  possessed,  and  paid  his  creditors  to  the  utmost  far- 
thing. He  even  refused  to  retain  the  homestead  allowed 
him  by  law.  He  turned  over  the  water  stock  to  the 
banking  and  express  firm  of  Adams  k  Co.  for  literally 
nothing,  (but  out  of  which  they  afterwards  cleared  a  con- 
siderable sum)  transferred  his  banking  business  to  them, 
and  entered  their  establishment  as  managing  clerk  of  the 


568  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

banking  departmentj  at  a  liberal  salary.  No  man  could 
say  that  he  lost  one  dollar  by  trusting  Mr.  King  as  his 
banker.  Ke  satisfied  every  obligation,  and  began  to  seek 
fortune  anew. 

On  February  22d,  1855,  Adams  &  Co.  failed.  The 
consequences  of  their  failure  were  disastrous  in  the  ex- 
treme to  thousands  of  industrious  persons  in  every  por- 
tion of  the  State.  Mr.  King  retired  from  the  ruined  firm 
without  a  shadow  of  stain  upon  his  personal  reputation. 
He  had  done  his  duty  to  his  employers,  and  had  acted  in 
good  faith  and  honorably  towards  the  creditors.  He  was 
next  to  seek  justice  for  them,  or  at  least  avenge  them  on 
their  betrayers.  After  the  failure  of  Adams  &  Co.,  and 
in  March,  1855.  he  endeavored  to  create  a  new  banking 
business  for  himself,  but  without  success.  Public  opin- 
ion ran  strongly  against  all  banks,  and  general  distrust 
w^as  excited  against  making  deposits  in  any.  He  had  no 
capital  but  his  good  name,  and  that  could  not  be  coined 
into  money  to  enable  him  to  conduct  the  necessary  finan- 
cial operations.  He  was  therefore  obliged  to  close  his 
establishment  in  the  month  of  June  following.  He  pre- 
served his  credit  and  reputation  for  personal  probity, 
throughout;  and  nobody  had  yet  sustained  any  loss 
through  him.  While  diligently  pursuing  his  profession, 
he  ever  sought  to  perform  the  duties  incumbent  on  a  good 
citizen.  As  foreman  of  the  Grand  Jury,  and  as  a  leading 
agent  in  whatever  public  and  private  movements  were 
connected  with  the  promotion  of  the  peace,  purity  and 
prosperity  of  San  Francisco,  he  rendered  much  valuable 
and  effective  service  to  the  community. 

It  was  the  Grand  Jury  of  November,  1853,  of  which 
he  was  foreman,  that  preferred  a  bill  of  indictment  against 
the  City  Treasurer.  For  the  fearless  discharge  of  his  du- 
ties Mr.  King  received  much  newspaper  abuse,  and  a 
warning  that  if  he  did  not  desist,  his  life  would  be  in  dan- 
ger. In  reply  to  an  abusive  article  published  in  a  daily 
paper,  after  stating  his  reason  for  not  more  fully  giving 
the  evidence  that  was  brought  before  the  Jury,  he  says : 

"  I  will  say,  however,  that  from  the  very  commencement  of  proceed- 
ings against  one  of  the  parties  accused,  threats  were  made  to  the  ef- 


JAMES  KING   OF   WM.  669 

feet  that  if  we  found  a  true  bill  against  that  gentleman,  at  least  five 
or  six  of  us  would  certainly  be  shot,  and  that  a  certain  newspaper 
in  this  city  would  be  ' '  down  "  upon  us.  *  *  *  I  have  been 
called  upon  by  several  of  my  friends,  and  requested  to  arm  myself 
against  an  attack.  I  have  not  and  do  not  intend  to  carry  anj' 
w^eaj^on.  I  shall  have  no  fears  for  anything  that  may  occur,  and  in 
conclusion  will  add,  that,  though  I  shall  feel  bound  to  defend  my- 
self as  I  can,  if  assaulted,  yet  I  know  my  position  too  well  to  allow 
any  threats  or  editorial  remarks  from  a  certain  quarter  to  tempt  me 
from  my  joresent  position.  I  went  on  this  Grand  Jury  with  the 
greatest  reluctance.  During  the  whole  course  of  my  life,  I  have  not 
absented  myself  so  much  from  my  business  as  I  have  during  its  ses- 
sion. I  think  I  am  within  bounds  in  saying  $2,000  would  not  repay 
me  for  that  neglect.  I  asked  to  be  excused,  and  the  Judge  would 
not  do  it;  but  fined  me  $50  for  not  being  more  punctual.  The  fine 
was  afterwards  remitted.  I  have  endeavored  to  do  my  duty  faith- 
fully. I  trust  the  public,  even  if  it  does  not  think  as  I  do,  will  give 
me  credit  for  my  intention;  but  whether  it  does  or  not,  I  cannot  ca- 
ter to  that  public's  taste  to  the  violence  of  my  oath.  I  have  confi- 
dence in  their  sense  of  justice;  whether  they  aj^prove  or  dissent,  I 
can  meet  the  eye  of  any  man  living,  and,  what  is  sweeter  still,  am 
at  peace  with  my  own  conscience,  and  can  look  around  in  my  family 
circle  and  know  that  the  mother  and  six  little  ones  need  not  blush 
for  me." 

At  the  risk  of  a  repetition  of  some  of  the  events  be- 
fore narrated  in  this  sketch,  we  shall  proceed  to  give  Mr. 
King's  published  statement  of  the  relations  that  existed 
between  Adams  &  Co.  and  himself:  showing  how  he  stood 
with  them,  and  how  earnestly  he  strove  to  prevent  the 
failure  which  he  saw  would  inevitably  befall  them  unless 
they  pursued  a  different  business  policy.  Mr.  King  says, 
in  answer  to  queries  addressed  to  him  through  the  news- 
papers : 

"  Through  the  imprudence  of  a  banker  at  Sonora  (who  had  been 
my  cashier  during  nearly  the  whole  of  the  years  1850-51,  and  in  whose 
judgment  and  discretion  I  had  the  utmost  confidence)  a  large 
amount  of  funds  placed  by  me  in  his  hands  for  the  purchase  of  gold 
dust,  was,  without  my  knowledge,  taken  for  the  uses  of  the  Tuo- 
lumne Hydraulic  Assgociation,  of  which  he  was  the  Treasurer.  The 
stockholders  refusing  to  ratify  certain  extraordinaiy  exj^enses  incur- 
red by  the  Board  of  Directors,  a  suit  was  instituted,  which  was  de- 
cided against  the  stockholders,  and  the  canal  was  bought  in  at 
Sheriff's  sale,  to  secure  the  debt.  Unable  to  meet  my  call  for  funds, 
the  parties  in  question  did  all  they  could,  and  gave  me  the  entire 
works  for  security.  Month  after  month  I  waited  anxiously  for  the 
receipts,  which  did  not,  by  any  means,  equal  the  anticipations  of 


570  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

those  familiar  with  the  work.     During  all  this  time  I  was  a  prey  to 
the  most  agonizing  doubts  and  fears. 

For  the  first  time  in  my  life  I  was  unexpectedly  placed  in  a  po- 
sition where,  in  the  event  of  a  run,  I  could  not  possibly  meet  my 
engagements.  No  one  that  has  not  been  similarly  situated  can 
imagine  the  agony  I  endured  from  day  to  day,  and  week  to  week, 
as  I  saw  persons  walk  into  my  office  and  dejDosit  money  wdiich,  in 
the  event  of  a  j)anic,  before  I  could  turn  my  property  into  cash,  I 
knew  I  could  not  return.  I  saw  it  all,  felt  it  all,  and  dared  not  oj^en 
my  lips.  I  cared  not  about  being  poor.  All  I  aimed  at  was  to  be 
able,  at  a  moment's  warning,  to  return  what  had  been  entrusted  to 
me.  I  was  afraid  to  attempt  borrowing  money,  lest  it  should  hasten 
the  very  crisis  I  wished  to  avoid.  I  consulted  with  a  few  friends, 
showed  them  my  books,  and  asked  their  advice.  "Why,"  said  one 
of  the  firm  of  Page,  Bacon  &  Co.,  ^*  Mr.  King,  I  don't  see  that  you 
are  as  bad  off  as  you  represent;  you  are  stronger  than  any  banker 

in  the  street  excepting,  perhaps,  Messrs.  and  Messrs.  ." 

*'Then,  heaven  help  us  all,"  I  replied,  "for  I  don't  see  how  I  can 
^et  along  without  borrowing,  and  that  would  never  answer  for  a 
Banker.  The  result  of  this  conference  was  that  I  was  offered,  if 
needed,  $50,000  by  Page,  Bacon  &  Co.,  and  $50,000  by  Mr.  Haskell, 
of  Adams  &  Co.  As  I  hesitated  about  accepting  this  offer,  one  of 
the  friends  urged,  among  other  things,  that  Mr.  Haskell  (of  Adams 
&>  Co. )  considered  himself  under  obligations  to  me  for  the  handsome 
manner  in  which  I  had  managed  their  affairs  at  Stockton,  where,  by 
pledging  myself  for  coin  advanced  them  to  aid  their  house,  I  had 
stopped  the  run  at  that  point  and  saved  the  other  countr)^  offices  as 
wall  as  the  parent  house  here.  That  my  commission  as  receiver 
'would  have  amounted  to  a  large  sum,  which  I  had  refused  to  accept, 
sud  declining  any  compensation  for  my  time  and  services,  received 
ha£k  only  the  actual  amount  of  my  expenses — some  $160,  or  $170. 
This  decided  me,  and  I  told  them  I  would  call  on  them  in  case  I 
inaeded  any  assistance.  I  set  myself  earnestly  at  the  work  of  sell- 
ling  off  my  property,  calling  in  loans,  and  converting  everything  into 
<2ash,  when  I  received  the  following  offer  from  Mr.  Woods  (of  Adams 
&  Co. )  through  Mr.  Park :  1st.  On  my  transferring  to  them  a  cer- 
tain amount  of  property,  part  in  cash,  part  in  bills  receivable,  and 
tbe  balance  in  certain  pieces  of  real  estate,  they  would  undertake 
to  assume  all  my  liabilities  of  every  kind,  provided  they  did  not  in 
the  aggregate  exceed  an  amount  before  stated  by  me  from  memorj^ 
2d-  I  should  remain  in  their  employ  for  the  space  of  two  years,  for 
which  they  agreed  to  pay  me  the  sum  of  one  thousand  dollars  per 
!  month,  and  a  certain  per  centage  on  the  amount  of  their  interest 
I  account,  regardless  of  any  losses  or  gains  either  on  said  interest  or 
I  any  other  account. 

I  declined  giving  Mr.  Park  any  answer  until  the  offer  was  made 
in  writing;  which  w^as  done  in  the  course  of  a  half  hour,  and  ac- 
cepted by  me  without  hesitation;  for,  though  it  left  me  penniless, 
it  enabled  me  to  meet  all  my  engagements,  and  I  was  assured  of 
their  ability  to  advance  the  amount  required  without  any  detriment 


JAJ.IES  KING   OF   WM.  571 

to  their  own  depositors.  After  the  bargain  was  concluded,  and 
whilst  the  lawyers  were  drawing  the  papers,  Mr.  Woods  called  on 
me,  and  asked  how  I  liked  the  bargain.  I  replied,  *' Veiy  much,  in- 
deed. And  what  do  you  think  of  it?"  "Well,"  he  said,  "I  like  it 
so  well  that  I  would  not  undo  it  for  $100,000."  "And  I  assure  you," 
I  rejoined,  "that  even  if  I  were  sure  your  most  sanguine  expecta- 
tions would  be  realized,  I  would  not  undo  it  for  a  like  sum. " 

After  receiving  the  details  of  my  assets,  Mr.  Woods  expressed 
himself  highly  pleased  at  the  result,  and  said  to  a  mutual  friend: 
"King  is  entirely  too  honest;  he  underrated  everything  he  had,  and 
though  he  had  become  so  disgusted  with  the  canal  as  not  to  set  any 
valuation  at  all  on  it,  I  am  satisfied  I  shall  make  fron  $100,000  to 
$150,000  out  of  it;  and  when  I  get  through,  w^e  shall  make  King  a 
present  of  $10,000  or  $20,.000.  I  am  posted  on  canals,  and  he  knows 
nothing  about  them. " 

Among  the  assets  thus  conveyed  by  me  to  Adams  &  Co.,  were  : 
The  three  stoiy  fire -proof  Building,  at  the  corner  of  Mont- 
gomery and  Commercial  Streets,  valued  at, $36,000  00 

Lot  on  Stockton  Street,  for  which  I  had  been  offered, .  .  .     7,000  00 

Water  Lot  No.  273, 15,000  00 

Three  small  Lots  valued  at  $250,  each, 750  00 

Loan  to  Orphan  Asylum,  on  mortgage, 500  00 

Eighty  Acres  of  Land  on  the  County  road,  with  dwell- 
ing-House,  Barn,  Carriage  House,  &c.,  and  all  the 
Stock  thereon,  as  well  as  Furniture  in  the  house, ....     8,000  00 

Buggy,  pair  of  Horses,  Harness,  &c., 1,000  00 

$1,000,  of  old  Stock,  Bradley,  Berdan  &  Co.,  cost  $1200,     1,000  00 

$3,000,  Plank  Road  Stock,  at  55cts. , 1,650  00 

$15,100,  Central  Wharf  Stock,  at  30cts., 4,530  00 

1st  Class  Bills  Receivable,  all  since  paid, 37,189  00 

Debt  of  A.  A.  Cohen,  since  paid, 1,200  00 

Over  Prafts,  since  paid, 17,472  55 

Fremont  Drafts,  since  paid, 14,125  00 

Cash, 49,548  87 

$194,965  42 

To  this  should  be  added  one  gc  od  Note,  payment  of ... . 

which,  by  request,  was  not  pressed, 3,312  00 

And  the  Loans  made  on  Account,  and  by  Note,  as  secu- 
rity for  which,  I  held  the  Tuolumne  Hydraulic  Canal, 
w^hich  cost  upwards  of  $350,000,  and  which  I  am  now 

informed  is  paying  $2,000,  per  month, 80,055  35 

On  which  had  accrued  at  the  time  I  closed  business,  an 

average  of  about  five  months,  interest,  say 12,000  00 

In  addition  to  this  amount  of  $290,332.77,  I  handed  over  sun- 
dry Bills  Receivable,  not  considered  good,  amounting,  to  $22,580.15, 
but  which  were  not  counted  at  the  time.  The  whole  amount  of  my 
liabilities,  here  and  elsewhere,  amounted  to  the  sum  of  $278,951.29. 


572 


REPRESENTATIYE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 


From  the  Bulletin  of  N'ovember  3d,  1855,  we  take  the 
following,  entitled 


To  the  San  Francisco  Puhlic : 

A  Card  over  the  signature  of  the  Financial  Conductor  of  the 
Chronicle  newspaper,  and  which  appeared  in  yesterday's  issue  of 
that  journal,  being  the  first  effusion  of  that  kind  over  the  real  name 
of  the  author,  demands,  I  think,  a  notice  from  me.  Passing  over 
the  abusive  terms  applied  to  me  by  the  writer  referred  to,  I  come 
at  once  to  the  direct  charges  made  against  me  by  a  man  of  whose 
person  I  am  totally  ignorant,  with  whom  I  am  not  aware  that  I  ever 
yet  exchanged  a  word,  and  of  whose  very  name,  until  within  the 
past  week,  I  was  wholly  unconscious.  And  first,  as  to  the  charge  of 
living  extravagantly  and  beyond  my  means.  I  lived  well,  but,  for 
my  means,  not  extravagantly.  My  house  was  a  good  one.  I  aimed 
to  have  it  such.  It  was  not  larger  than  I  needed,  and  was  fur- 
nished well,  without  having  unnecessary  display.  Those  who  were 
in  the  habit  of  visiting  there,  will  judge  from  the  following  table 
whether  my  style  of  living  was  beyond  my  means. 

I  made  it  a  point  to  balance  m}'-  profit  and  loss  account  once  a 
month  for  the  purpose  of  seeing  how  my  affairs  stood,  and  regulat- 
ing my  expenses  accordingly. 

The  following  table  shows  the  net  profit  of  my  banking  business, 
over  and  above  salaries  and  all  office  expenses,  for  a  series  of 
months. 

For  the  month  ending  April  30,  1852, $6,591  56 

May    31,  ''     3,535  01 

June  30,  ''     4,183  08 

July  31,  "      5,075  08 

Aug.   31,  '^     922  87 

Sept.  30,  "     2,702  57 

Oct.    31,  ''     830  14 

Nov.    30,  "     1,048  14 

Dec.   31,  ''  .......  5,033  91 

Jan.    31,1853, 1,619  48 

Feb.    28,  ''  .......  3,726  35 

Mar.    31,  ''     2,695  92 

Apr.    30,  "     970  34 

May    31,  ''     4,557  68 

June   30,  ''     524  31 

July    31,  ''     3,257  22 

Aug.   31,  "     5,483  54 

Sept.  30,  " 4,101  44 

Oct.,  Nov.  and  to  Dec.    31,  '*     4,104  89 


Making  for  twenty-one  months,  the  sum  of $60,963  53 

and  an  average  for  the  whole  period  of  $2, 903. 03  per  month.     This, 
be  it  remembered,  was  my  income  from  my  regular  banking  busi- 


JA^IES   KING    OF   TOf.  573 

ness,  and  did  not  include  my  profits  from  sales  of  real  estate,  of 
which  a  separate  account  was  kept.  As  to  the  "parties"  alluded  to 
by  the  proprietor  of  the  Chronicle,  I  never  gave  but  one  during  my 
seven  year's  residence  in  California.  So  much  for  the  private  affairs 
of  a  household  thus  unceremoniously  dragged  into  the  public  prints 
by  a  man  whom,  so  far  as  I  know,  I  have  never  seen. 

The  next  thing  to  be  noticed  is  the  charge  of  betraying  the  con- 
fidence reposed  in  me  by  the  firm  of  Adams  &  Co. ,  in  whose  employ 
I  once  was.  This  charge  If  ully  answered  in  my  letter  to  I.  C.  Woods, 
dated  the  26th  of  July  last,  and  published  in  the  Sun  and  Alfa, 
wherein  I  showed  that,  notwithstanding  the  quarrel  then  going  on 
between  Woods  and  Cohen,  on  the  one  side,  and  myself  on  the 
other,  I  refused  to  give  any  information  about  matters  obtained  by 
me  whilst  in  their  employment,  and  preferred  the  loss  of  my  best 
friends  rather  than  betray  the  trust.  When  announcing  my  determ- 
ination to  Mr.  Woods,  I  said :  ''  This  sir,  is  the  most  painful  duty 
I  ever  had  to  perform.  My  honor  forces  me  to  keep  your  secret, 
whilst  by  so  doing  I  am  sure  to  lose  my  best  friends,  and  you  and 
Cohen,  my  worst  enemies,  knowing  the  dilemma  in  which  I  am 
placed,  chuckle  with  delight  at  the  pain  that  decision  gives  me.** 
Profoundly  ignorant  of  the  rascality  of  Woods,  that  has  since  been 
told  me,  I  never  opened  my  lips  to  any  one  about  the  private  affairs 
of  Adams  &  Co.,  until  the  attorney  of  one  of  the  partners  (Mr. 
Adams)  asked  for  a  statement  of  what  I  knew  about  the  business  of 
the  firm,  and  I  told  everything  I  knew  to  that  partner,  because  he 
had  a  right  to  know  it. 

The  public  have  already  been  informed  of  the  causes  which  led 
to  my  employment  by  Adams  &  Co.  After  completing  the  changes 
necessary  to  the  system  of  accounts  introduced  by  me  into  that  of- 
fice, I  set  myself  to  work  to  find  out,  as  far  as  the  books  in  my  pos- 
session would  show,  what  the  real  condition  of  the  house  Avas,  and 
soon  made  up  my  mind  it  was  insolvent.  I  immediately  reported 
the  fact  to  Mr.  Woods,  who  at  first  affected  to  laugh,  and  then  be- 
coming seriously  alarmed,  asked  me  what  I  meant?  I  replied  :  "to 
discharge  my  duty  to  my  employers,  and  by  warning  you,  sir,  of  the 
condition  of  the  house,  if  possible,  save  it  from  ruin,  and  its  de- 
positors from  heavy  losses. "  The  result  of  that  conversation  was, 
that  he  promised  to  sell  off  what  property  the  fii-m  owned,  and  con- 
vert everything  into  cash ;  to  allowTne  to  reduce  the  amount  of  bills 
receivable  to  the  extent  of  two  or  three  hundred  thousand  dollars; 
to  build  no  more  offices  and  buy  no  more  property  ;  but  to  sell  off 
his  ranch,  as  well  as  all  his  other  private  "property"  so  called, 
and  generally  take  the  measures  proposed  by  me  for  placing  the 
house  in  a  condition  to  meet  any  crisis  that  might  arise.  Had  Mr. 
Woods  adhered  to  my  advice,  the  house  would  have  been  in  far 
better  condition  to  stand  the  crisis  that  awaited  it.  But  every  move 
I  made  for  the  good  of  the  house  was  thwarted  by  a  contrary  one 
on  the  part  of  Mr.  Woods.  With  all  the  exertions  I  could  make, 
it  took  me  nearly  a  whole  month  to  reduce  the  loans  $60,000,  and 
in  Jive  minutes,    Woods  had  arranged  for  loans  to  the  extent  of 


574  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

$125,000.  What  could  I  do?  I  was  but  a  clerk;  he  the  sole  part- 
ner resident  here. 

The  question  now  arises  naturally,  why  it  was,  when  I  dis- 
covered the  house  was  insolvent,  I  did  not  resign  and  leave  it? 
My  answer  is,  that  by  contract  I  was  bound  to  remain  with  them  for 
the  space  of  two  years,  and  could  not  get  away.  In  addition  to 
this,  let  me  ask  what  good  could  I  have  accomplished  by  leaving  the 
firm  in  the  lurch,  as  it  were,  and  in  so  doing  alarm  some  of  the  de- 
positors and  hasten  the  ruin  ?  By  remaining  I  not  only  fulfilled  my 
contract  :  but  as  Woods  spoke  of  going  to  the  Atlantic  States,  I 
had  some  hopes  of  having  more  power  placed  in  my  hands,  and 
with  him  out  of  the  way,  might  possibly  save  the  house. 

On  the  17th  of  July,  1855,  Mr. ,  now  a  very 

wealthy  citizen  of  San  Francisco,  with  whom  Mr.  King 
had  been  on  hostile  terms,  and  the  latter  met  on  Mont- 
gomery street,  opposite  Barrett  &  Sherwood's  jewelry 
store,  and  a  few  words  ensuing,  the  nature  of  which  was 
unknown  to  any  beside  the  parties  themselves,  Mr.  King 

struck  several  times  about  the  head  and  shoulders, 

and  considerably  worsted  his  adversary.  This  led  to  the 
following  challenge  by  Mr. ,  and  reply  by  Mr.  King. 

San  Francisco,  July  17th,  1855. 
To  James  King  of  Wm., 

Sir  : — I  hereby  demand  satisfaction  from  you,  for  your  con- 
duct toward  me  this  afternoon.     I  refer  you  to  my  friend. 

Your  obedient  Servant, 


San  Francisco,  July  18th,  1855. 

Mr. , 

Sir  : — I  now  proceed  to  give  you  my  reply  to  the  note  you 
handed  me  last  night.  And  first,  waiving  other  insuperable  objec- 
tions to  the  mode  indicated  of  settling  such  difficulties,  I  could 

not  consent  to  a  hostile  meeting  with  Mr.  .     The  public 

have  already  been  fully  advised  of  my  estimate  of  his  character. 
The  relative  positions  of  Mr.  and  myself  are  entirely  une- 
qual in  worldly  fortune,  and  domestic  relation.  He  is  understood 
to  be  possessed  of  an  abundant  fortune.  In  the  event  of  his  fall, 
he  would  leave  ample  means  for  the  support  of  his  wife  and  child. 
Recent  events  have  stripped  me  entirely  of  what  I  once  possessed. 
Were  I  to  fall,  I  should  leave  a  large  family  without  the  means  of 
support.     My  duties  and  obligations  to  my  family  have  much  more 

weight  with  me  than  any  desire  to  please  Mr.  ■ or  his  friends, 

in  the  manner  proposed.     I  have  ever  been  opposed  to  duelling  on 

moral  grounds.     My  opinions  were  known  to  Mr. ,  and  when 

he  addressed  me  the  note  which  you  had  the  impudence  to  deliver, 


JAMES   KING   OF  WM.  575 

he  was  well  aware  that  it  would  not  be  accepted  or  answered  affirm- 
atively. That  fact  is  sufficient  to  demonstrate  his  contemptible  cow- 
ardice in  this  silly  attempt  to  manufacture  for  himself  a  reputation 
for  "chivalry." 

Whilst  nothing  could  induce  me  to  change  my  principles  upon 
the  subject  of  duelling,  my  conscience  is  perfectly  easy  as  to  my 
light  and  the  propriety  of  defending  myself  should  I  be  assaulted. 

Do  not  flatter  yourself,  sir,  that  this  communication  is  made  out 
of  regard  either  to  yourself  or  to  Mr.  .  I  write  this  for  pub- 
lication in  the  newspapers.  I  avow  principles  of  which  I  am  not 
ashamed,  and  shall  abide  the  result                James  King  of  Wm. 

This  was  the  first  instance  in  the  history  of  Califor- 
nia that  any  one  had  had  the  moral  courage  to  refuse  to 
fight  a  duel  when  challenged ;  and  among  other  evidences 
which  Mr.  King  received  of  the  high  appreciation  which 
the  better  class  of  society  placed  upon  his  conduct,  was 
the  following  communication  addressed  to  him,  which 
was  signed  by  many  of  the  prominent  business  men  of 
the  city. 

James  King  of  Wm. ,  Esq. , 

Sir: — Your  fellow  citizens,  whose  names  are  subscribed  to 
this  letter,  desire  to  express  to  you  their  admiration  of  the  moral 
courage  and  sound  principle  manifested  in  your  refusal  to  accept 

the  challenge  of  Mr.  ,   to  meet  him  in  a  duel.     We  believe 

that  the  so-called  code  of  honor  which  requires  all  who  consent 
to  be  governed  by  it  to  submit  every  injury,  insult,  misrepresen- 
tation or  misunderstanding  to  the  decision  of  the  pistol  or  the 
knife,  to  be  in  violation  of  the  law  of  God.  and  of  the  laws  of  this 
State,  and  of  those  sacred  obligations  which  a  man  owes  to  his 
family,  his  relatives  and  dependents,  and  to  society. 

We  are  convinced  that  if  an  expression  of  the  sentiment  of  this 
community  could  be  had  upon  this  subject,  a  very  large  majority 
would  be  found  to  view  with  abhoiTence  the  risking  of  life  for  in- 
sufficient cause,  and  often  upon  a  mere  punctilio ;  and  that  we  ex- 
press the  feeling  common  to  them,  as  well  as  ourselves  when  we 
thank  you  for  the  bold,  manly,  and  uncompromising  manner  in 
which  you  have  refused  to  sanction  the  practice.  With  the  expres- 
sion of  an  earnest  hope,  that  if  no  higher  principle  should  govern 
our  fellow  citizens,  a  regard  for  their  interest  may  soon  induce  them 
to  see  to  it  that  good  laws  well  administered  shall  in  future  save  us 
from  violence  and  bloodshed  ;  and  with  assurances  of  our  high 
esteem  and  regard,  we  remain,         Your  obedient  Servants. 

(Here  follow  some  seventy  signatures. ) 

On  the  8th  of  October,  of  the  same  year,  Mr.  King 
started  and  edited  the  Daily  Evening  BuUetin^  a  newspaper 


576  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

which  suddenly  rose  to  the  most  unbounded  popularity^ 
and  which  has  had  a  wide  sway,  and  exercised  a  great  in- 
fluence over  the  community.  As  stated  by  himself,  the 
problem  to  be  solved  at  the  establishment  of  this  paper 
was:  "Would  the  San  Francisco  public  sustain  a  truly  in- 
dependent journal — one  that  would  support  the  cause  of 
morality,  virtue  and  honesty,  whether  in  public  service  or 
private  life,  and  which,  regardless  of  all  consequences, 
would  fearlessly  and  undauntedly  maintain  its  course 
against  the  political  and  social  evils  of  the  day?"  The 
answer  Yes!  was  soon  and  loudly  made,  and  enthusiastic- 
ally echoed  from  every  town  and  mining  camp  in  the 
country.  The  services  rendered  by  James  King  of  Wm., 
in  the  Bulletin^  to  the  cause  of  political  integrity,  and 
public  and  private  morals,  will  never  be  forgotten  by  the 
people  of  the  State.  He  attacked  ih.<d  vicious  and  crimi- 
nal wherever  he  found  them.  Corruption  in  high  places 
met  in  him  a  relentless  foe. 

A  notorious  and  professedly  banking  house,  but  which 
was  virtually  a  political  institution,  that  had  long  overrid- 
den the  Constitution,  and  made  and  unmade — against  the 
will  of  the  people,  and  by  the  most  disreputable  means — 
nearly  every  officer  of  the  city  and  State,  was  assailed  by 
the  Bulletin  in  regular  form  ;  and  its  corruption,  its  inso- 
lent and  dangerous  usurpation,  and  at  the  same  time  its 
inherent  weakness,  exposed.  The  wrongers  and  swindlers 
of  the  unfortunate  creditors  of  Adams  &  Co."  were  piti- 
lessly attacked  and  held  up  to  the  scorn  and  detestation 
of  the  people.  The  demoralizing  system  of  bestowing 
Federal,  State  and  city  appointments  chiefly  on  profes- 
sional gamblers,  duelists,  rowdies  and  assassins — on  the 
debauched,  illiterate,  idle,  criminal,  and  most  dangerous 
class  of  the  mixed  population  of  the  country — was  forci- 
bly pointed  out  and  indignantly  condemned.  A  high 
standard  of  honesty  was  laid  down  for  all  public  men. 
The  law's  cruel  delay,  the  baseness  and  corruption  of  its 
ministers,  the  dishonorable  professional  conduct  of  lead- 
ing pleaders  in  the  courts,  all  were  made  plaiii  to  the 
honest  and  unsuspecting,  and  properly  stigmatized.  In 
short,  the  glaring  evils  of  the  body  politic,  the  denial  and 


JAMES  KING   OF   WM.  577 

perversion  of  justice,  and  the  unworthy  personal  charac- 
ter and  incapability  of  the  general  class  of  men  who  held 
office,  or  who  were  connected  with  the  courts  of  law,  were 
loudly  and  unsparingly  denounced.  Mr.  King  did  not 
waste  his  energies  by  uttering  smooth,  general  homilies 
on  evil  doings  ;  he  struck  directly  at  the  evil-doer.  If  a 
man  whose  conduct  required  to  be  publicly  exposed  were 
really  a  swindler,  a  gambler  or  duelist,  a  common  cheat, 
a  corrupt  judge  or  a  political  trickster,  the  Bulletin^  stand- 
ing alone  in  this  respect  among  the  timid,  time-serving  or 
bribed  city  press,  dared  so  to  style  him.  But  not  only  did 
Mr.  King,  in  his  paper,  expose  scoundrelism,  vice  and 
crime,  and  smite  their  votaries  wherever  he  detected 
them  ;  he  also  endeavored,  and  not  in  vain,  to  aid  in 
whatever  could  restore  and  strengthen  the  moral  tone  of 
society.  He  urged  the  decent  observance  of  the  Sabbath; 
he  recalled  public  attention  to  the  plainest  and  most  nec- 
essary dictates  of  religion;  he  encouraged  the  establish- 
ment of  public  schools,  and  dwelt  on  the  blessings  of  a 
sound  and  liberal  education;  he  frowned  on  gambling, 
dueling,  and  willful  idleness;  he  sought  to  soothe  and  re- 
inspire  the  desponding  who  had  the  desire  but  lacked  the 
opportunity,  and  especially  the  energy  and  perseverance, 
to  earn  a  living  by  the  sweat  of  their  brow;  he  strove  to 
free  the  city  from  the  unblushing  presence  of  the  lewd 
who  had  so  long  assumed  insolently  to  follow,  if  not  often 
to  lead,  the  virtuous  and  decent  portion  of  the  commun- 
ity. The  political  knave,  the  dishonest  office-holder,  the 
gambler,  swindler,  loafer  and  duelist,  the  base  class  of 
lawyers — in  brief,  the  vicious,  lewd  and  criminal  of  every 
kind,  were  in  consternation;  their  unhallowed  practice 
and  gains  were  disappearing. 

A  conspiracy  was  formed :  and  the  end  of  it  all  was 
the  public  assassination  of  this  brave  champion  of  the 
people's  rights.  The  conspirators  resolved  and  swore  to 
secure  impunity  to  the  guilty  doer.  A  base,  illiterate 
man — a  convicted  felon,  who  had  served  a  sentence  of 
imprisonment  in  Sing  Sing  penitentiary,  but  who  yet 
held  a  high  municipal  office  in  San  Francisco,  into  which 
he  had  been  stuffed  by  ballot-box  fraud — was  the  wretched 
37 


578  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

tool  of  the  secret  murderers.  The  professed  cause  of  the 
deed  was  that  James  King  of  Wm.  had  told  the  truth  con- 
cerning him. 

The  circumstances  attending  the  assassination,  and  the 
events  which  followed,  will  ever  appear  as  fixing  a  grand 
epoch  in  the  history  of  California,  and  from  that  day  will 
date  the  regeneration  of  public  virtue,  if  not  also  of  private 
morals,  in  the  State. 

Mr.  King  was  taken  unawares,  and  deliberately  shot 
down,  about  five  o'clock  on  the  afternoon  of  Wednesday, 
the  14th  day  of  May,  1856,  on  the  public  thoroughfare, 
near  the  northwest  corner  of  Montgomery  and  Washing- 
ton streets.  A  ball,  fired  from  a  navy  revolver,  entered 
the  left  breast  and  passed  through  his  body.  After  lin- 
gering in  much  pain,  and  for  some  time  affording  strong 
hopes  of  recovery,  he  gradually  sank,  and  died  of  the 
wound  shortly  after  one  o'clock  on  the  afternoon  of  Tues- 
day, the  20th  of  May. 

His  death  was  universally  regarded  (except  by  the 
miserable  faction  whom  he  had  pursued)  as  a  national 
calamity,  and  every  honor  that  a  grateful  people  could  be- 
stow was  heaped  on  his  memory.  A  public  subscription, 
amounting  to  nearly  $32,000,  was  raised  throughout  the 
city  and  State,  and  presented  to  his  widow  and  family  of 
six  children.  He  was  thirty-four  years  and  a  few  months 
old  when  he  died.  His  was  a  tall,  well-proportioned,  manly 
form.  The  keenness  of  his  eyes,  his  handsome  black 
beard,  and  the  noble  expression  of  his  countenance — the 
index  to  his  heroic  character — were  vividly  remembered 
by  all  who  saw  him  but  only  once.  His  body  lies  buried 
in  the  Lone  Mountain  Cemetery,  mid-way  between  the 
city  and  the  ocean. 

On  the  afternoon  of  Thursday,  the  2 2d  day  of  May, 
the  assassin,  James  P.  Casey,  was  hanged  before  a  vast 
multitude  by  the  Vigilance  Committee.  At  the  same  in- 
stant of  time  that  a  solemn  dirge  was  being  chanted  over 
the  dead  body  of  the  victim,  previous  to  the  funeral  pro- 
cession leaving  the  old  Unitarian  Church,  on  Stockton 
street,  for  the  cemetery,  the  murderer  was  struggling  with 
death.     That  day.  May  22d,  1856 — in  which  also  news 


JAMES   KING   OF   WM.  57i; 

reached  San  Francisco  of  a  dreadful  railway  accident  on 
the  Isthmus  of  Panama — was  one  of  manifold  horrors  to 
the  citizens. 

Among  the  numerous  tributes  offered  to  the  memory 
of  James  King  of  Wm.  were  the  following  verses,  written 
by  W.  H.  Rhodes,  Esq.,  (better  known  by  the  norn  de plume ^ 
^'Caxton,")  which  were  appropriately  set  to  music  by. 
Prof.  Rodolph  Herold. 

"He  Fell  at  His  Post  Doing  Duty." 

The  patriot  sleeps  in  the  land  of  his  choice, 

In  the  robe  of  a  martyr,  all  gory, 
And  heeds  not  the  tones  of  the  world-waking  voice. 

That  cover  his  ashes  with  glory. 
"What  recks  he  of  riches?  what  cares  he  for  fame. 

Or  a  world  decked  in  grandeur  or  beauty  ? 
If  the  marble  shall  speak  that  records  his  proud  name, 
"  He  died  at  his  post,  doing  duty  !  " 

The  pilot  that  stood  at  the  helm  of  our  bark, 

Unmoved  by  the  tempest's  commotion, 
"Was  swept  from  the  deck  in  the  storm  and  the  dark, 

And  sank  in  the  depths  of  the  ocean.  ♦ 

But  little  he'll  grieve  for  the  life  it  has  cost, 

If  our  banner  shall  still  float  in  beauty. 
And  emblaze  on  its  folds,  of  the  pilot  we  lost, 
'*He  died  at  his  post  doing  duty  V 

The  warrior-chieftain  has  sunk  to  his  rest — 

The  sod  of  Lone  Mountain  his  pillow  ; 
For  his  bed,  California  has  opened  her  breast ; 

His  dirge,  the  Pacific's  sad  billow ! 
As  long  as  the  ocean-wave  weeps  on  our  shore. 

And  our  valleys  bloom  out  in  their  beauty. 
So  long  will  our  country  her  hero  deplore, 

Who  fell  at  his  post  doing  duty ! 


JOSEPH   C.  TUCKER 


% 


j3y  )Villiam  y.  yii 

%''    

IT  is  impossible  to  look  back  upon  the  history  of  Califor- 
nia during  the  last  twenty  years,  without  recognizing 
the  influence  of  the  learned  callings  in  the  development 
of  the  State;  and  this  has  been  particularly  the  case  as 
regards  members  of  the  medical  fraternity.  ,  Not  only  in 
an  intense  application  to  the  details  of  the  profession  has 
this  been  seen,  but  men  of  classical  education  have  been 
a  potent  element  in  the  progress  of  communities — in  their 
political,  scientific  and  general  advancement.  This  is 
owing,  not  more  to  the  energy  essential  to  the  successful 
physician,  than  to  the  direction  which  the  eventful  cir- 
cumstances of  the  early  days  gave  to  character,  which, 
among  less  exciting  surroundings,  might  not  have  pro- 
duced the  impatient,  practical  activity  distinguishing  men 
of  scholarly  attainments  in  this  new  field  of  adventure. 
Numbers  of  valuable  institutions  on  the  Pacific  coast 
have  originated  in  the  sagacious  counsels  and  well-direct- 
ed efforts  of  physicians.  A  principal  among  these  pro- 
moters has  been  the  present  surgeon  of  the  U.  S.  Marine 
Hospital  at  San  Francisco,  Dr.  J.  C.  Tucker,  who,  per- 
haps, more  than  most  other  men,  has  given  an  impulse  to 
sanitary  legislation  in  California,  while,  at  the  same  time, 
his  influence  has  been  felt  in  a  wide  variety  of  useful 
public  enterprises. 

Dr.  Tucker  was  born  in  1828,  in  New  York  city,  where 
the  family  name  ranks  among  the  oldest  in  the  State. 
His    grandfather,   father,  and    only  brother,   the    Hon. 


582  REPRESENTATIVE   IVIEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Gideon  J.  Tucker,  late  Secretary  of  State,  and  present 
Probate  (Surrogate)  Judge  of  New  York,  have  all  been 
actively  prominent  men.  He  commenced  the  study  of 
medicine  under  Doctors  Robert  M.  Cairnes  and  Willard 
Parker,  and  graduated  in  1848,  taking  the  degree  of  M.  D. 
in  the  old  Crosby  street  Medical  College  in  New  York.  He 
early  excelled  as  a  student  in  surgery,  having  a  firm,  bold 
hand,  and  inflexible  nerve.  About  the  time  he  obtained 
his  majority,  the  famous  suit  (well  remembered  in  legal 
annals)  respecting  the  will  of  his  grandfather,  Hon.  Gid- 
eon Tucker,  and  involving  one  of  the  largest  properties 
in  New  York  city,  was  decided  against  the  grandchildren. 

The  hope  of  bettering  his  fortunes,  together  with  the 
fascinations  of  the  gold  discovery,  impelling,  him  towards 
the  newly-acquired  California,  he  embarked  in  January, 
1849,  as  surgeon  in  the  ship  TaroUnta,  for  San  Francisco, 
where  he  arrived  on  the  first  of  July  following.  The 
company  in  which  he  .was  interested  sensibly  following 
the  then  general  rule,  dissolved,  and  the  Doctor  visited 
the  gold  regions,  leading  the  life  of  a  miner,  and  working 
in  the  placers  of  the  American  river  until  the  ensuing 
winter,  when  we  find  him  practising  his  profession  in 
Sacramento  city.  The  ''Gold  Lake"  excitement  in  the 
following  spring  carried  him  into  the  mountains,  with 
innumerable  other  ardent  young  adventurers,  in  quest  of 
alleged  marvellous  deposits  of  gold ;  but  detained  at  the 
foot-hills  of  the  Sierras  by  impassable  snow  fields,  the 
party  encamped  at  Bid  well's  Bar,  where  the  Doctor  prof- 
itably occupied  himself  in  surveying  and  running  the 
present  town  limits  with  chain  and  compass,  and  erecting 
upon  the  most  desirable  site  the  first  house — the  Empire 
Hotel. 

Returning  to  Sacramento,  he  organized  a  second  expedi- 
tion in  search  of  the  Gold  Lake  myth,  which,  after  weari- 
some and  perilous  adventures  among  the  pathless  mount- 
ains, resulted  in  the  dissolution  of  the  company  and  the 
return  of  its  members  in  great  destitution.  The  exist- 
ence of  this  fabulous  mine  of  wealth,  however  chimerical 
it  may  now  appear,  was  at  that  primitive  time  firmly  be- 
lieved in,  and  the  search  was  prosecuted  by  hundreds  from 


JOSEPH   C.    TUCKER.  583 

various  points,  lured  by  the  charm  of  novelty,  and  the 
mystery  that  yet  hung  over  the  snowy  solitudes,  where, 
as  the  adventurers  not  unreasonably  conceived,  immense 
treasures  might  exist,  which  were  the  sources  of  the  rich 
placers  in  the  regions  below.  Returning,  the  Doctor 
found  his  way  to  Dobbin's  Rancho,  on  the  Yuba  river, 
and  located  a  large  tract  of  land,  with  a  log  trading  house, 
where  the  ''Keystone  Rancho  House"  now  stands.  Dis- 
covering through  the  Indians  with  whom  he  traded,  the 
first  dry  gulch  diggings  known  in  that  vicinity,  he  quietly 
employed  them  in  obtaining  a  large  amount  of  gold  dust 
before  their  existence  became  known  to  other  white  men. 
Selling  his  fine  estate,  now  worth  a  fortune,  for  $1,000, 
the  Doctor,  tired  of  his  lonely  mountain  life,  returned  to 
Sacramento  city,  where  he  resumed  the  practice  of  his 
profession. 

In  1851-2,  he  was  elected  to  the  Assembly.  Dur- 
ing both  of  these  terms  he  took  a  leading  part  in  va- 
rious exciting  issues,  embracing  most  of  the  import- 
ant questions  of  that  period.  He  was  identified  with 
what  was  called  the  anti-Broderick  wing  of  the  De- 
mocracy, and  was  known  as  the  friend  of  Gwin,  Weller, 
Denver,  and  other  leaders  of  that  branch  of  politics.  He 
was  also  an  early  friend  and  companion  of  Col.  Fremont. 
By  his  persuasive  eloquence  and  unobtrusive  managing 
talent  among  his  fellow-members,  he  was  a  recognized 
power  in  directing  the  course  of  legislation.  During  the 
memorable  session  of  capital  removals,  he  framed,  intro- 
duced, supported  in  strong  argument,  and  finally  passed  the 
first  bill  providing  for  the  State  care  of  insane  persons. 
The  bill,  as  drawn  by  him,  proposed  to  locate  the  Asylum 
on  the  high  lands  near  San  Francisco,  within  the  influence 
of  the  sea  breezes;  but  political  considerations,  and  swap- 
ping upon  the  then  pending  Senatorial  contest,  carried  it  to 
its  present  unsuitable  and  malarious  location  at  Stockton. 
Prominent  upon  the  Legislative  State  Hospital  Committee, 
the  Doctor  then,  as  ever  since,  devoted  himself  almost  ex- 
clusively to  politico-medical  subjects.  He  was  elected  at 
the  close  of  the  session  to  the  position  of  State  Quarantine 
officer.    Immediately  following  his  appointment  came  the 


584  EEPRESENTAITYE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

first  visitation  of  small  pox  to  California,  and  although 
less  fatal  than  the  subsequent  one  of  1869,  there  were 
at  one  time  upwards  of  two  hundred  cases  of  it  in  the 
Quarantine  Hospital  under  his  charge. 

When  the  State  hospitals  were  abolished,  in  1854,  and 
each  county  was  required  to  provide  for  its  own  sick, 
Dr.  Tucker  was  elected  by  the  municipal  government  of 
San  Francisco  its  city  physician.  He  was  a  prominent 
and  successful  member  of  the  profession,  and  was  an  in- 
timate friend  of,  and  adviser  with  the  lamented  Dr.  H.  M. 
Gray — the  two  young  practitioners  having  commenced 
their  professional  career  about  the  same  time,  in  New 
York.  They  usually  acted  together  in  the  meetings  of 
the  California  State  Medical  Society,  and  of  the  Medico- 
Chirurgical  Society  of  San  Francisco,  of  both  of  which 
Dr.  Tucker  was  Vice-President,  as  he  was  also  of  the  State 
Medical  Society  of  New  York. 

Pie  became  connected,  in  the  spring  of  1855,  with  an 
enterprise  which,  for  a  while,  was  to  give  a  new  direction 
to  his  energies.  The  writer  of  the  present  sketch  had 
lately  returned  from  Central  America,  where,  during  his 
sojourn  in  Honduras,  he  had  secured  from  the  govern- 
ment of  that  Republic  important  mining  and  commercial 
privileges,  embracing  the  exclusive  right  to  navigate  cer- 
tain rivers;  to  export  and  import  goods  free  of  duty,  to 
establish  trading  posts  along  the  coasts  and  mahogany- 
cuttings  in  the  interior;  together  with  valuable  conces- 
sions of  lands  and  gold  and  silver  mines  in  the  department 
of  Olancho,  which  were  exempted  from  the  taxes  and  ex- 
actions customary  in  that  country.  There  was  a  dash 
of  romance  and  adventure  in  the  affair  that  naturally  at- 
tracted the  attention  of  the  Doctor,  whose  broad  views 
and  keen  perceptions  foresaw  in  this  enterprise  the  possi- 
ble extension  of  our  institutions  into  the  Spanish  Amer- 
ican Republics,  and  their  eventual  annexation  to  the 
United  States.  The  grants  which  had  been  procured 
after  long  and  patient  negotiation,  were  taken  to  New 
York,  and  at  once  attracted  the  attention  of  capitalists 
by  their  extraordinary  liberality  and  extent.  Together 
with  the  Honduras  Inter-oceanic  Railroad  grant  made  by 


JOSEPH   C.   TUCKER.  585 

the  same  government  to  Mr.  E.  G-.  Squier  and  his  New 
York  associates,  it  was  seen  that  these  concessions  were 
virtually  a  transfer  of  the  Republic,  with  its  vast  mineral 
and  agricultural  resources,  to  the  two  companies,  thus 
establishing  an  association,  resembling,  in  many  respects, 
the  English  East  India  Company.  Throwing  his  whole 
energies  into  the  new  channel,  Dr.  Tucker  repaired  to 
New  York,  and  in  the  spring  of  1856,  in  connection  with 
this  enterprise,  he  was  appointed,  by  President  Pierce,  U. 
S.  Consul  General  and  Commissioner,  with  special  powers, 
to  the  Government  of  Honduras. 

In  the  meantime,  General  Walker,  the  afterwards  cel- 
ebrated filibuster,  availing  himself  of  information  obtained 
from  the  writer  hereof,  had  raised  a  party  of  adventurers, 
and  landing  in  Nicaragua  had  espoused  the  cause  of  the 
Liberals  there,  and  virtually  obtained  possession  of  the 
country.  The  adjoining  Republics,  alarmed  at  this  irrup- 
tion of  Anglo-Saxons  in  their  vicinity,  were  naturally  sus- 
picious of  Americans.  Dr.  Tucker,  albeit  armed  with 
the  credentials  of  his  diplomjxtic  mission,  was  subjected 
to  infinite  annoyances  and  hostilities  by  petty  officials  on 
his  route  from  San  Juan  del  Norte  among  the  secluded 
populations  of  Nicaragua  and  Honduras,  to  which  were 
added  the  dangers  and  vicissitudes  of  a  lonely  journey 
through  dense  forests  and  uninhabited  regions,  across 
formidable  rivers,  swollen  by  tempests,  and  among  the 
gloomy  defiles  of  the  Central  American  Cordilleras.  On 
more  than  one  occasion  attempts  were  made  to  assassinate 
him,  instigated  by  the  jealousies  of  the  local  authorities 
in  Chontales  and  Segovia,  who  had  been  apprised  of  the 
approach  of  his  little  cavalcade,  and  associated  it  with  the 
Nicaragua  filibusters.  By  the  exercise  of  address  and 
vigilance  acquired  by  an  early  familiarity  with  mountain 
life  in  California  he  eluded  these  dangers,  and  reached  the 
city  of  Tegucigalpa  in  May.  Thence  he  proceeded  to 
Comayagua,  the  capital  of  Honduras,  where  the  new- 
ly-elected and  reactionary  Indian  President  Guardiola 
refused  to  recognize  him  under  the  pretense  that  his 
credentials  were  forged.  Argument  would  have  been 
useless  and  resistance  foolish.     To  attempt  to  prove  the 


586  REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

authenticity  of  his  papers  would  have  been  undignified. 
The  commissioner,  therefore,  decided  to  leave  the  country, 
and  reaching  Omoa,  a  small  port  on  the  Caribbean  Sea,  he 
chartered  a  coasting  vessel  and  embarked  for  Truxillo  and. 
Havana,  whence  he  returned  to  New  York,  arriving  in 
June,  1855,  thus  terminating  a  series  of  adventures  of 
continuous  excitement  and  peril.  Although  the  mission 
was  a  failure  as  far  as  its  legitimate  objects  were  concerned, 
the  Doctor  obtained  much  interesting  knowledge  of  the 
American  tropics,  one  of  the  wildest  and  most  unfrequent- 
ed portions  of  which  he  had  penetrated.  The  peculiari- 
ties of  a  strange  and  decadent  race,  living  in  the  primitive 
simplicity  of  by-gone  centuries;  the  majestic  symmetry 
of  the  volcanoes,  clothed  to  their  summits  with  verdure; 
the  mysterious  solitude  of  the  forest ;  the  splendid  plum- 
age of  its  denizens,  and  the  fantastic  shapes  and  gaudy 
hues  in  which  tropical  ]S"ature  robes  herself,  indelibly  im- 
pressed themselves  upon  a  mind  keenly  sensitive  to  such 
influences. 

Mr.  Marcy,  then  Secretary  of  State,  already  sufficient- 
ly embarrassed  with  the  Walker  raid  in  Nicaragua,  found  it 
convenient  to  overlook  the  insult  to  the  American  flag 
implied  by  the  non-recognition  of  his  special  commis- 
sioner, and  the  latter  had  the  good  sense  not  to  weary  the 
Secretary  with  pertinacious  applications  for  redress,  al- 
though he  had  been  a  heavy  sufferer  pecuniarily.  The 
important  commercial  results  which  had  been  anticipated 
from  the  Olancho  enterprise  were  never  realized,  owing  to 
the  fears  engendered  by  the  devastations  committed  by 
Walker's  filibusters;  and  a  government  which  had  been 
ion  the  eve  of  placing  itself  permanently  as  a  protectorate 
iinder  the  United  States,  with  a  view  to  ultimate  absorp- 
tion by  us,  withdrew  into  its  customary  seclusion  imbued 
with  a  deep-seated  distrust  of  American  faith. 

Dr.  Tucker  returned  to  California  in  1857,  having  been 
appointed  by  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  U.  S.  Examin- 
er of  Drugs  and  Medicines  in  San  Francisco.  While 
holding  this  official  position,  he  imported  at  his  own  ex- 
l^nse  a  magnificent  laboratory,  and  applied  himself  closely 
?i[  his  favorite  study  of  analytical  chemistry.     His  atten- 


JOSEPH    C.   TUCKER.  587 

tion  being  called  to  the  advantages  of  a  cheap  and  efficient 
substitute  for  bone-black  in  discoloring  sugar  liquids,  he 
after  many  experiments  perfected  and  patented  the  pro- 
cess now  universally  used  in  sugar  refineries,  of  hydrated 
alumina.  In  connection  with  the  sale  and  employment  of 
this  patent  he  visited  the  principal  sugar  refineries  in  tht 
United  States  and  Cuba. 

Visiting  New  York  the  following  year,  on  official  busi- 
ness from  California,  he  resigned  his  position  in  Wash- 
ington, and  accepted  that  of  Deputy  Secretary  of  State  of 
New  York,  which  in  turn  he  resigned  in  December,  1859, 
and  returned  by  the  Southern  Overland  Route  to  San 
Francisco  to  carry  out  an  enterprise  which  he  had  long 
had  in  contemplation — building  street  railroads.  At  the 
session  of  the  Legislature  of  1861,  the  bill  incorporating 
the  ''North  Beach  and  Mission  Railroad,"  which  he  had 
proposed,  was  introduced  ;  and  at  once  encountered  the 
venomous  opposition  of  rival  companies,  lobby  mem- 
bers and  interested  parties  in  San  Francisco.  The  war 
was  virulent  and  bitter.  The  progress  of  the  bill  was 
fought  at  every  step,  its  passage  impeded  in  each  branch 
of  the  Legislature,  and  the  most  strenuous  efforts  made 
to  obtain  the  Executive  veto.  It  was  urged  that  the  proj- 
ect was  a  mere  swindling  job,  and  would  be  no  accommo- 
dation to  the  traveling  public.  Signatures  to  petitions 
against  the  railroad,  were  industriously  hunted  up  by 
agents  hired  to  manufacture  opinion  hostile  to  the  '^  in- 
famous Tucker  Bill."  To  meet  objections  raised  against 
the  road  through  so  narrow  a  street  as  Kearny,  he  drew 
up,  and  caused  to  be  offered,  a  bill  providing  for  the 
widening  of  that  street.  This  proposition,  now  so  suc- 
cessfully consummated,  brought  upon  his  head  anew  the 
anathemas  of  the  property  holders  along  the  route.  Al- 
though opposed  and  discouraged  by  those  who  should 
have  aided  him,  he  persevered,  finally  organizing  and 
building  the  now  most  prosperous  railroad  in  the  city — its 
passenger  traffic  far  exceeding  that  of  any  other,  thus 
proving  it  to  have  been  a  work  of  the  first  public  utility. 

About  this  time  his  health  failing  him,  Dr,  Tucker 
took  the  position  of  Surgeon  on  the  Nicaragua  Steamship 


588  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

line.  Visiting  New  York  again  in  1863,  he  married  the 
lady  to  whom  he  had  become  engaged  while  in  Havana, 
three  years  before — the  daughter  of  Albert  Havemeyer 
Esq.,  of  New  York,  and  returned  to  California.  Having 
some  mining  interests  on  the  Comstock  vein,  he  went  to 
Virginia  City,  Nevada,  and  being  offered  the  care  of  the 
hospital  at  that  place,  remained  and  entered  into  a  large 
and  lucrative  practice,  holding  at  different  times  the  po- 
sitions of  Physician  to  the  State  Insane  Asylum,  Coroner 
of  Storey  County,  and  City  and  County  Physician  of  Vir- 
ginia. Here,  when  cutting  and  shooting  were  daily  occur- 
ences, he  performed  many  bold  and  successful  surgical 
-operations.  During  the  war,  as  Commissioned  Assistant 
Surgeon  U.  S.  A.  at  that  post,  he  had  charge  of  the  Bar- 
rack hospital  and  examination  of  recruits,  and  always  has 
been,  in  act  and  word,  an  undeviating  friend  to  the  Union. 

In  the  spring  of  1865,  with  his  family  he  left  Virginia 
City  and  passed  the  summer  in  the  East.  Shortly  after 
his  return  to  San  Francisco  the  ensuing  fall,  he  was  ap- 
pointed by  President  Johnson,  Surgeon  of  the  U.  S. 
Marine  Hospital,  a  position  he  still  holds  to  the  satisfac- 
tion of  the  authorities  at  Washington.  At  the  time  of 
the  memorable  earthquake  in  October,  1868,  being  then 
in  charge  of  this  hospital,  his  utmost  presence  of  mind 
was  called  into  requisition.  The  structure,  one  of  the 
largest  in  the  city,  was  racked  and  shattered.  As  there 
was  every  indication  that  the  hospital  would  fall  under 
repeated  shocks,  he  took  the  responsibility  of  removing 
the  patients  to  safer  quarters  at  his  own  expense,  a  pro- 
cedure which  was  approved  by  the  Department  at  Wash- 
ington, and  the  building  was  subsequently  condemned 
by  the  government  architects. 

Another  of  his  projects  of  public  beneficence  was  the 
purchase  of  a  valuable  tract  of  land  in  Alameda,  on  the 
opposite  side  of  the  bay  from  San  Francisco,  where  in  the 
spring  of  1867,  he  established  a  private  Insane  Asylum. 
Conducted  on  humane  and  philanthropic  principles,  it  has 
proved  a  blessing  to  the  afflicted,  where  in  many  cases, 
delicacy  seeks  for  that  shelter  in  a  private  institution 
which  a  public  State  establishment  cannot  afford.     The 


JOSEPH   C.    TUCKER.  589 

Doctor,  in  his  leisure  hours,  has  indulged  a  taste  for  me- 
chanics, and  among  other  trifles  obtained  a  patent  for  a 
machine  sewing  simultaneously  two  seams,  or  parallel  rows 
of  stitching. 

Our  sketch  must  necessarily  be  confined  to  mere  brief 
allusions  to  the  many  public  measures  of  v/hich  Dr.  Tuck- 
er is  the  originator.  His  life  has  been  one  of  continual 
activity,  and  the  talisman  of  his  uniform  success  is  to  be 
found  in  the  happy  combination  of  an  affable  address 
with  great  persistency  of  purpose,  and  an  intuitive  knowl- 
edge of  men.  He  had  hardly  become  of  age  when  he 
arrived  in  California,  but  his  intrinsic  merits  speedily 
raised  him  to  an  eminence  seldom  reached  except  through 
painful  toiling  and  experience.  A  nervous  restlessness 
of  temperament,  and  the  courageous,  almost  reckless, 
spirit  of  adventure  w^hich  has  ever  impelled  him  to  rapid 
achievement  in  a  multiplicity  of  enterprises,  is  not  at  first 
apparent  under  a  quiet,  unaffected  exterior.  His  tastes 
at  once  refined  and  manly,  are  equally  displayed  in  art 
subjects  and  yatching,  in  which  latter  amusement  he  is  an 
enthusiast  and  skillful  amateur.  As  a  friend,  he  is  faith- 
ful and  companionable.  Entertaining  in  conversation,  he 
is,  as  well,  a  forcible  writer,  having  been  a  frequent  con- 
tributor to  the  press,  generally  on  scientific  subjects,  and 
wielding,  like  his  brother  in  New  York,  a  vigorous  and 
caustic  pen.  Enjoying  an  enviable  popularity,  surrounded 
by  the  most  charming  domestic  influences,  and  having 
earned  by  years  of  public  service  the  confidence  of  the 
government,  his  usefulness  in  the  future  promises  to  be 
as  positive  as  his  power  for  good  has  hitherto  been  wide- 
reaching  and  acknowledged. 


EDMUND  RANDOLPH 

^Y    )VlLLIAM    ji.     p.HODES. 


A  NAME  radiant  with  revolutionary  glories,  a  lineage 
famed  for  great  men  in  great  causes,  for  more 
than  ^ve  generations.  Edmund  Randolph  was  born  in 
Virginia  in  the  year  1818,  and  died  at  San  Francisco  at 
the  early  age  of  forty-two.  He  was  an  offshoot  of  the 
Virginia  Randolphs,  and  inherited  the  chief  traits  of 
character  of  those  extraordinary  men.  His  father,  grand- 
father, and  great  grandfather,  were  lawyers,  and  he  him- 
self early  studied  the  same  profession.  He  was  liberally 
educated,  having  graduated  at  William  and  Mary's  Col- 
lege shortly  before  settling  in  New  Orleans,  where  he 
read  law,  and  received  the  appointment  of  Clerk  of  the 
Circuit  Court  of  the  United  States  for  the  Circuit  of 
Louisiana.  During  his  residence  in  New  Orleans,  he 
married  the  daughter  of  a  leading  physician  of  that  city, 
Dr.  Meaux. 

He  continued  to  practice  law  until  the  news  from 
California  woke  up  within  him  aspirations  of  a  broader 
usefulness  and  a  loftier  ambition  than  he  could  gratify  at 
home;  and  early  in  1849  he  turned  his  eyes  towards  the 
West,  and  reached  these  shores  in  the  course  of  that 
year.  Before  he  left  New  Orleans,  he  began  to  exhibit 
talents  of  a  very  superior  order,  both  as  a  learned  lawyer 
and  an  eloquent  advocate,  and  gave  promise  of  those 
splendid  attributes  of  a  finished  debater  that  lifted  him 
above  all  competitors.     He  had  scarcely  landed  in  Cali- 


592  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE  PACIFIC. 

fornia  ere  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  lower  branch 
of  the  first  Legislature  that  convened  under  the  State 
constitution. 

But  his  heart  was  not  in  politics.  His  mind  looked 
more  lovingly  at  the  honors  of  his  profession  than 
towards  those  gathered  in  the  political  arena.  He  was 
very  often  importuned  by  those  most  intimately  ac- 
quainted with  him,  and  who  knew  his  great  parts,  to 
permit  his  name  to  be  used  in  connection  with  high  legis- 
lative offices  in  this  State,  but  always  ineffectually.  He 
became  a  partner  of  the  noted  lawyer,  R.  A.  Lockwood, 
Esq.,  and  of  Frank  Tilford,  and  the  firm  soon  led  the 
ranks  of  the  profession  in  the  city  of  San  Francisco. 

One  of  the  most  significant  acts  of  his  life  was  his 
opposition  to  the  first  Vigilance  Committee  in  this  city, 
in  1851.  He  publicly  and  boldly  denounced  that  organ- 
ization, its  leaders,  abettors,  and  sympathizers;  and  so 
terrible  became  his  anathemas  that  a  sub-committee  from 
that  body  was  appointed  to  wait  upon  him  and  Mr.  Lock- 
wood,  and  request  them  to  cease  their  denunciations,  or 
quit  the  city.  The  reply  received  by  the  parent  com- 
mittee was  such  that  the  request  was  not  renewed,  nor  the 
penalty  imposed. 

Edmund  Randolph  hated  oppression,  fraud,  cruelty, 
and  wrong,  with  a  vehemence  that  bordered  upon  sub- 
limity. It  looked,  to  some  of  his  more  prudent  friends, 
like  a  species  of  insanity.  In  the  argument  of  his  cause, 
if  the  testimony  brought  out  any  fact  that  threw  a  sus- 
picion of  corruption  upon  his  opponents,  the  floodgates 
of  his  soul  were  at  once  opened,  and  he  broke  forth  in  a 
torrent  of  indignant  eloquence  that  bore  away  every  im- 
pediment in  its  course.  But  his  heart  was  just  as  sus- 
ceptible to  the  kindlier  emotions,  and  he  would  plead 
the  cause  of  innocence  with  a  tenderness  and  sincerity 
that  drowned  his  audience  in  tears. 

His  familiarity  with  the  early  history  of  California 
gave  him  great  advantages  over  most  of  his  brethren  at 
the  bar,  and  he  was  usually  retained  in  all  the  important 
suits  where  such  knowledge  was  most  valuable.  It  was 
this  superiority,  as  much  perhaps  as  his  fame  as  an  ad- 


EDMUXD    RANDOLPH.  593 

vocate,  that  secured  for  him  a  retainer  in  the  cause  cdehre 
of  the  United  States  vs.  Castillero ;  usually  known  as  the 
New  Almaden  Quicksilver  Case.  The  trial  of  this  stu- 
pendous suit — for  it  was  gigantic  in  all  its  parts:  in  the 
amount  involved,  in  the  principle  at  stake,  in  the  number 
and  reputation  of  the  counsel  employed,  and  in  the  length 
and  duration  of  its  various  sessions — was  the  acme  and 
the  flower  of  his  fame. 

Titans  were  all  around  him.     Judah  P.  Benjamin,  the 
greatest  civilian  in  the  United  States,  was  his  chief  op- 
ponent.    At  his  right  hand   sat  Reverdy  Johnson,  the 
worthy  successor  of  William  Pinckney  at  the  Baltimore 
bar;   on  his  left,  the  no  less  renowned  champion  of  the 
Philadelphia  forum,  Edwin  M.  Stanton,  his  coadjutor  in 
the  cause.     The  most  noted  men  of  the  coast  were  his 
auditors.     He  rose  fully  up  to  the  dignity  and  import- 
ance of  the  occasion,  and   vindicated   his   right   to    be 
there.     Indeed,  for  a  full  mastery  of  his  case  in  all  its 
bearings,  for  varied  and  useful  learning,  for  quick  and 
unsleeping  vigilance,  for  powerful  and  splendid  oratory, 
and  above  all  for  success,  he  was  not  surpassed  by  either 
of  the  great  advocates  about  him.    The  government  took 
the  wise  precaution  to  have  the  entire  proceedings  re- 
ported and  printed.     They  form  in  themselves  almost  a 
whole  library  on  the   subjects   discussed;   and  he  who 
would    study  the    ancient   mining   codes   of   Spain  and 
Mexico,  and  consequently  of  California,  cannot  find  so 
rich  and  exhaustive  a  treatise  in  any  other  repository. 
But  the  most  precious  portions  of  that  vast  magazine 
must  be  sought  in  the  speeches  and  arguments  of  Ed- 
mund   Randolph.       His    early    indoctrination    into    the 
Justinian  Code,  which  indeed  has  formed  the  substratum 
of  the  jurisprudence  of  all  Europe,  except  England,  for 
two  thousand  years,  fitted  him   peculiarly  for  the  task.j 
before  him.     But  to  this  he  superadded  perfect  familiar- t.l 
ity  with  the  modern  codes  of  Spain  and  Mexico,  in  the  I 
original  tongue;  and  thus  armed,  defied  the  entire  arsenals 
of  his  opponents.     No  other  cause  has  ever  attracted  so 
much  attention  on  this  coast,  and  it  is  quite  safe  to  assert 
that  none  henceforth  ever  will.     It  forms  the  most  en- 
38 


594  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

during  monument  to  his  fame,  and  like  the  trial  of  Warren 
Hastings,  constitutes  an  epoch  in  judicial  history. 

The  efforts  of  Mr.  Randolph  in  the  Castillero  suit 
were  so  untiring  and  self-sacrilicing  that  they  left  him  with 
a  weakened  constitution  and  an  incipient  disease.  Ag- 
gravated by  two  or  three  other  conflicts  at  the  bar  hardly 
less  laborious,  it  soon  assumed  a  dangerous  aspect,  and 
he  became  conscious,  when  too  lute  to  remedy  the  dis- 
order, that  pulmonary  consumption  had  set  in.  Brave, 
buoyant,  and  hopeful  to  the  last,  he  fought  his  distemper 
with  the  same  fortitude  that  he  ever  exhibited  in  his 
great  moral  combats,  but  unfortunately  with  less  success. 
He  continued  to  fail  monthly  until  the  fatal  day  ap- 
proached (September  8th,  1861);  then  folding  his  arms 
in  mute  but  dignified  repose,  he  slept  with  his  fathers. 

The  annals  of  California  do  not  furnish  a  more  bril- 
liant name  than  that  of  Edmund  Randolph.  His 
historical  studies  can  be  best  appreciated  by  consulting 
the  case  above  named,  and  by  a  perusal  of  his  Address 
TO  THE  Pioneers,  portions  of  which  follow  this  sketch. 
This  was  afterwards  republished  in  pamphlet  form^  and 
is  an  indispensable  adjunct  to  a  correct  knowledge  of  the 
subject. 

Towards  the  close  of  Mr.  Randolph's  career,  he  was 
jorevailed  on  to  make  a  few  political  speeches,  especially 
in  the  great  conflict  between  the  Lecompton  and  anti- 
Lecompton  wings  of  the  Democratic  party.  In  this  con- 
troversy he  warmly  espoused  the  cause  of  Douglas,  in 
opposition  to  the  then  President  of  the  United  States^ 
James  Buchanan;  and  in  1859  was  defeated  as  the  anti- 
Lecompton  candidate  for  Attorney  General  of  California. 
But  as  the  country  was  evidently  drifting  into  war — a 
war  of  sections,  a  fight  for  supremacy  betwixt  North  and 
I  South — true  to  his  hereditary  instincts,  to  the  home  of 
i  his  youth  and  to  the  land  of  his  nativity,  he  did  not, 
could  not  hesitate  where  he  was  to  be  found.  He  bitterly 
opposed  the  successive  measures  of  the  Lincoln  adminis- 
tration, and  denounced  them  with  terrific  energy.  His 
whole  soul  seemed  to  become  one  vast  volcano  of  molten 
rage,  and  he  spoke  more  vehemently  than  ever  before 


EDMUND  EANDOLPH.  595 

during  his  whole  life.  The  last  speech  he  ever  delivered 
in  public  was  perhaps  the  greatest  proof  which  he  ever 
displayed  of  his  power  of  language  when  aroused.  It  was 
delivered  at  Sacramento  on  the  5th  day  of  August,  1861, 
and  on  the  8th  of  September  following  he  was  no  more. 

The  writer  of  this  sketch  was  present  at  the  time  the 
speech  was  delivered,  in  company  with  the  late  Judge 
Baldwin  of  the  Supreme  Court.  During  the  mid-day  recess 
of  the  Court,  we  strolled  into  the  Democratic  convention 
then  in  session,  and  reached  there  just  in  time  to  witness 
the  terrible  invective  of  Mr.  Randolph — concentrating  in 
itself  the  fury  of  an  inflamed  patriot  and  the  frenzy  of  an 
inspired  prophet.  The  tone,  the  gesture,  the  action,  the 
expression  of  lip  and  eye,  can  ne'er  be  forgotten.  ^'  Great 
God!"  exclaimed  Judge  Baldwin,  ''  did  you  ever  hear  elo- 
quence like  that?  Randolph  seems  to  be  on  fire."  And 
so  indeed  he  was.  But  the  flame  was  the  last  flickerings 
of  life's  candle.  The  intensity  of  the  passion,  uttei-ed  in 
half  hysteric  shrieks,  overcame  the  shattered  bulwarks 
of  a  constitution  almost  gone,  and  from  that  hour  he 
sank  rapidly  to  the  tomb. 

Bitter  as  were  partizans  at  the  period  when  he  died, 
no  one  could  find  it  in  his  heart  to  censure  the  dead 
Virginian  in  his  grave.  Even  his  political  foes  paused' 
over  his  remains,  and  gave  a  tear  to  the  splendid  genius 
and  the  brave  heart  that  had  perished.  All  men  believed 
in  his  sincerity,  and  knew  but  too  well  that  if  he  loved 
the  Federal  government  less  than  his  native  Virginia,  it 
was  the  fault  of  early  prejudices,  the  bias  of  political 
training,  and  the  recollections  of  ancestral  partiality. 
In  the  grave,  the  fault — if  fault  it  be — lies  buried.  Amid 
the  dazzling  effulgence  of  so  much  to  commend  and  so 
little  to  reprove,  we  can  well  afford  to  pardon  one  slight 
speck  upon  his  fame. 

In  domestic  life,  Mr.  Randolph  was  eminently  blest. 
His  wife  sympathized  with  him  in  all  his  toils  and  all  his 
triumphs.  She  still  survives  him,  with  a  bevy  of  beauti- 
ful children,  whose  inheritance,  though  it  were  a  throne, 
could  not  be  greater  than  that  which  they  now  enjoy — 
the  heritage  of  their  father's  glory. 


596  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 


^Uvmf  fey  i^mwttd  fatitlolplt, 

On  THE  History  of  California,  delivered  before  the  So- 
ciety OP  California  Pioneers,  at  their  Celebration  of 
THE  Tenth  Anniversary  of  the  Admission  of  California 
INTO  THE  Union,  September  10th,  1860. 

Pioneers: 

From  the  importunities  of  the  active  Present  which  surrounds 
us,  we  turn  for  a  brief  space  to  the  Past.  To-day  we  give  ourselves 
up  to  memory. 

And  first,  our  thoughts  are  due  to  those  who  are  not  here  assem- 
bled with  us;  whom  we  meet  not  on  street  or  highway,  and  wel- 
come not  again  at  the  door  of  our  dwellings;  upon  whom  shines  no 
more  the  sun  which  now  gladdens  the  hills,  the  plains,  the  waters 
of  California:  to  the  Pioneers  who  are  dead.  To  them,  as  the  laurel 
to  the  soldier,  you  will  award  the  honor  of  this  triumph,  marked  by 
the  marvellous  creations  which  have  sprung  from  your  common  en- 
terprises. To  them,  you  will  consecrate  a  success  w^hich  has  sur- 
pass^ the  boldest  of  the  imaginations  which  led  you  forth,  both 
them  and  you  to  a  life  of  adventures.  Your  companions  died  that 
California  might  exist.  Fear  not  that  you  will  honor  them  over- 
much. But  how  died  they,  and  where  do  they  repose — the  dead  of 
the  Pioneers  of  California? 

Old  men  amongst  you  will  recall  the  rugged  trapper;  his  frame 
was  strong;  his  soul  courageous;  his  knowledge  was  of  the  Indian's 
trail  and  haunts  of  game;  his  wealth  and  his  defence  a  rifle  and  a 
horse;  his  bed  the  earth;  his  home  the  mountains.  He  was  slain 
by  the  treacherous  savage.  His  scalp  adorned  the  wigwam  of  a 
chief.  The  wolf  and  the  vulture  in  the  desert  feasted  on  the  body 
of  this  Pioneer.  A  companion,  wounded,,  unarmed  and  famishing, 
wanders  out  through  some  rocliy  canon,  and  lives  to  recount  this 
tale — lives,  more  fortunate  in  his  declining  years,  to  measure,  per- 
haps, his  lands  Ja^  the  league,  and  to  number  his  cattle  by  the 
thousand.  And  the  sea,  too,  has  claimed  tribute;  the  remorseless 
waves,  amid  the  terrors  of  shipwreck,  too  often  in  these  latter  days 
have  closed  over  the  manly  form  of  the  noble  Pioneer.  The  monsters 
of  thedeephave  parted  amongst  them  the  flesh  of  ourfriends,  and  their 
dissevered  members  are  floating,  suspended  now  in  the  vast  abysses 
of  the  ocean,  or  roll  upon  distant  strands — play-things  tossed  by 
the  currents  in  their  wanderings.  And  here  in  San  Francisco,  ex- 
acting commerce  has  disturbed  the  last  resting-place  of  the  Pio- 
neers. Ten  years  and-a-half  ago,  pinched  by  the  severities  of  a 
most  inclement  winter,  under  the  leaky  tent  which  gave  no  shelter, 
they  sickened  and  died — and  then  women  and  children  were  Pio- 
neers too — by  scores  and  by  hundreds  they  sickened  and  died. 
With  friendly  hands,  which  under  disastrous  circumstances  could 


EDMUND   RANDOLPH.  597 

administer  no  relief,  you  yet  did  bnry  them  piously  in  a  secluded 
spot  upon  the  hill-side  or  in  the  valley,  and  planting  a  rude  cross 
or  board  to  mark  the  grave,  did  hope,  perhaps,  in  a  more  prosper- 
ous day,  to  replace  it  with  a  token  in  enduring  stone.  But  the  hill 
and  the  valley  alike  disappear  hourly  from  our  sight.  The  city 
marches  with  tremendous  strides.  Extending  streets  and  lengthen- 
ing rows  encroach  upon  the  simple  burial  ground  not  wisely  chosen. 
The  dead  give  place  to  the  living.  And  now  the  builder  with  his  mor- 
tar and  his  bricks,  and  the  din  of  his  trowel,  erects  a  mansion  or 
store-house  for  the  new  citizen,  upon  the  same  spot  where  the  Pio- 
neer was  laid  and  his  sorrowing  friend  dreamed  of  erecting  a  tomb- 
stone. Meanwhile,  by  virtue  of  a  municipal  order,  hirelings  have 
dug  up  and  carted  away  all  that  remained  of  the  Pioneers,  and  have 
deposited  them  in  some  common  receptacle,  where  now  they  are 
lying  an  undistinguishable  heap  of  human  bones. 

Pursuing  still  this  sad  review,  you  well  remember  how  with  the 
eager  tide  along  and  up  the  course  of  rivers,  and  over  many  a  stony 
ascent,  you  were  swept  into  the  heart  of  the  difficult  regions  of  the 
gold  mines;  how  you  there  encountered  an  equal  stream  pouring  in 
from  the  East,  and  in  a  summer  all  the  bars  and  flats,  and  gulches, 
throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  that  vast  tract  of  hills,  w^ere 
flooded  with  human  life.  Into  that  rich  harvest  Death  quickly  put 
his  sickle.  Toil  to  those  who  had  never  toiled ;  toil,  the  hardest 
toil,  often  at  once  beneath  a  torrid,  blazing  sun,  and  in  an  icy 
stream;  congestion,  typhus,  fevers  in  whatever  form  most  fatal;  and 
the  rot  of  scurvy;  drunkenness  and  violence,  despair,  suicide  and 
madness;  the  desolate  cabin;  houseless  starvation  amid  snows;  all 
these  bring  back  again  upon  you  in  a  frightful  picture,  many  a 
death  scene  of  those  days.  There  fell  the  Pioneers  who  perished 
from  the  van  of  those  who  first  headed  back  the  bolts  that  barred 
the  vaulted  hills,  and  jooured  the  millions  of  the  treasures  of  Cali- 
fornia upon  the  World ! 

Wan  and  emaciated  from  the  door  of  the  tent  or  cabin  where  you 
saw  him  expire ;  bloody  and  mangl'sd  from  the  gambling  saloon 
where  you  saw  him  murdered,  or  tbe  roadside  where  you  found  him 
lying;  the  corpse  you  bore  to  the  woods  and  buried  beneath*  the 
trees.  But  you  cannot  tell  to-day  which  pine  sings  the  requiem  of 
the  Pioneer. 

And  some  have  fallen  in  battle  beneath  our  Country's  flag. 

And  longings  still  unsatisfied  led  some  to  renew  their  adven- 
turous career  upon  foreign  soils.  Combating  for  strangers  whose 
quarrels  they  espoused,  they  fell  amid  the  jungles  of  the  Tropics 
and  fatted  the  rank  soil  there  with  right  precious  blood.  Or  upon 
the  sands  of  an  accursed  waste,  were  bound  and  slaughtered  by  in- 
human men  who  lured  them  witli  promises  and  repaid  their  coming 
with  a  most  cruel  assassination.  In  the  filthy  purlieus  of  a  Mexican 
viilage,  swine  fed  upon  all  that  murder  left  of  honored  gentlemen; 
until  the  very  Indian,  with  a  touch  of  pity,  heaped  up  the  sand  upon 
the  festering  d^ad,  a^d  /n^ave  slight  sepulture  to  our  lost  Pioneers. 

Though  from  the  first  some  there  were  who  found  in  California 


598  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

all  they  sought,  and  as  they  lived,  so  died,  surrounded  by  their  child- 
ren and  their  new-made  friends,  and  were  buried  in  church-yards 
with  holy  rites;  and  although  those  more  lately  stricken,  repose  in 
well-fenced  grounds,  guarded  by  the  society  they  planted,  and  whose 
ripening  power  they  have  witnessed;  and  are  gathered  to  a  sacred 
stillness,  where  we  too  may  hope  that  we  shall  be  received  when  full 
soon  we  sink  to  our  eternal  rest;  alas!  far  different  the  death  and 
burial  of  full  many  a" Pioneer! 

In  deeds  of  loftiest  daring  of  individual  man,  encounters  fierce 
and  rudest  shocks,  too  often  has  parted  the  spirit  of  the  Pioneer, 
and  left  his  mortal  body  to  nature  and  the  elements!  Thus  wilds 
are  conquered !  and  to  civilization  new  realms  ai^  won ! 

.  Upon  his  life  and  death  let  them  reflect  who  would  deny  to  the 
Pioneer  the  full  measure  of  the  rights  of  freemen. 

For  us,  we  behold  the  river  or  the  rock,  the  mountain's  peak, 
the  plain;  whatever  spot  from  which  his  eyes  took  their  last  look  of 
earth.  There  as  he  lies,  one  gentle  light  shining  athwart  the  gath- 
ering darkness  still  holds  his  gaze.  Guided  by  that  light,  we  wijl 
revisit  the  distant  home  of  the  dying  Pioneer.  In  imagination  we 
will  there  revive  the  faded  recollections  of  the  intrepid  boy,  who 
in  years  long  past  disappeared  in  the  wilderness  and  the  West,  and 
for  a  life-time  has  been  accounted  dead.  We  will  renew,  whilst  we 
console,  the  grief  of  the  aged  father  and  mother.  To  the  fresh 
son'ows  of  the  faithful  wife  we  pledge  the  sympathy  and  love  of 
brothers.  To  the  sons  and  daughters  of  our  friends  we  stretch  forth 
our  hands  in  benedictions  on  their  heads.  To  ancient  friends  we 
too  are  friends;  until  with  our  praises,  and  the' eventful  story  of  his 
life,  we  make  to  live  again  in  his  old  peaceful  home,  him  who  died 
so  wildly.  What  though  to  mournful  questioning  we  cannot  point 
their  graves?  They  have  a  monument,  behold  the  State !  And 
their  inscription,  it  is  wTitten  on  our  hearts. 

Thus,  as  is  meet,  we  honor  our  dead  Pioneers;  with  severe  yet 
pleasing  recollections,  grateful  fancies,  and  tears  not  unmanly. 
With  an  effort — we  turn  from  ourselves  to  our  country. 

[Mr.  Randolph  then  proceeded  to  trace  the  history  of 
California  from  the  time  of  Cortes  (1537)  down  to  the 
year  1830.  He  consumed  over  two  hours  in  this  portion 
of  his  address,  which  has  been  pronounced  by  high  au- 
thority,  'Hhe  most  complete  and  authentic  history  of  Cal- 
ifornia extant."  Its  great  length  prevents  its  insertion 
here  in  full. 

Of  populous  Christian  countries,  Upper  California  is 
among  the  newest.  Her  whole  history  is  embraced  with- 
in the  lifetime  of  men  now  living.  Just  ninety- one  years 
have  passed — 1769  to  1860,  A.  D. — since  man  of  European 
origin  first  planted  his  footsteps  within  the  limits  of  what 


EDMUND   RANDOLPH.  599 

is  now  our  State,  with  purpose  of  permanent  inhabitation. 
Hence,  all  the  inhabitants  of  California  have  been  but 
Pioneers. 

The  orator  concluded  as  follows :] 

Internal  disturbances  seem  to  have  commenced  in  California 
about  the  year  1830.  The  liberal  Spanish  Cortez  of  1813,  in  carrj-ing 
out  the  Constitution  which  they  adopted  for  the  Spanish  monarchy 
the  year  before,  decreed  the  secularization  of  all  the  Missions  in  the 
Sjoanish  dominions.  The  design  was  to  niake  general  what  had  al- 
ways been  done  before  by  special  authority — to  liberate  the  Indians 
from  the  control  of  the  Missionaiy  Fathers,  and  divide  amongst 
them,  as  their  separate  property,  the  land,  cattle,  and  whatever  else 
they  had  owned  in  common ;  to  establish  secular  priests  in  the 
place  of  regular  priests  or  monks  of  the  religious  orders  among 
them,  for  their  spiritual  guidance;  and  in  every  respect  to  convert 
the  Indian  villages  of  the  missions  into  Spanish  j)ueblos — the  pro- 
cess by  which,  in  so  great  a  degree,  society  was  constructed  in  all 
Sj^anish  American  countries,  and  the  ultimate  fulfillment  of  the 
purpose  of  the  King,  eveiywhere  so  prominently  put  forth  in  colon- 
izing California. 

The  decrees  of  the  Cortez,  not  incompatible  with  the  republican 
form  of  government,  continued  after  the  establishment  of  her  in- 
dei^endence  to  be  the  laws  of  Mexico  ;  but  veiy  few,  if  any,  of  them 
had  been  put  into  operation  in  California.  AVith  the  rest,  that  of 
SECULAEizATioN  remained  a  dead  letter.  Echandia,  the  Political 
Chief,  (as  the  Governor  was  then  entitled)  in  1830,  very  hurriedly, 
and  without  consulting  the  Supreme  Government,  published  as  the 
custom  of  the  Government  was,  a  set  of  Regulations  for  caiTjdng 
this  old  law  into  eifect.  At  that  moment  he  was  superseded  by 
Victoria,  who  suppressed  the  Regulations,  and  put  a  peremptory 
stop  to  the  secularization  of  the  Missions.  Victoria's  conduct  was 
approved  by  the  Supreme  Government;  but  there  was  a  party  here 
warmly  in  favor  of  the  secularization,  and  disturbances  which  were 
considered  serious  and  threatening  ensued,  although  I  do  not  know 
that  they  resulted  in  bloodshed.  The  chief  promoter  of  the  scheme 
was  sent  out  of  the  countiy  by  Victoria ;  and  thus,  I  think,  civil 
strife  commenced  in  California.  The  occasion  was  the  disT)osition 
to  be  made  of  the  Missions,  which  we  have  seen  were  once,  and  for 
so  long  a  time,  so  nearly  all  of  California.  It  was  the  beginning 
of  the  downfall  of  those  ancient  establishments,  so  difficult  for  us 
to  comprehend,  and  now  so  entirely  passed  away,  that  to  recall 
them  is  like  recalling  the  images  of  a  dream.  AVhat  the  Govern- 
ment of  Mexico  was  opposed  to  was  not  the  secularization  of  the 
Missions,  but  the  manner  in  which  it  was  attemj^ted.  The  agitation 
which  had  been  thus  commenced  resulted  in  the  passage,  by  the 
Mexican  Congress,  of  the  law  of  the  17th  of  August,  1833,  to  sec- 
ularize the  Missions  of  the  Calif ornias.  Under  it  the  work  was  be- 
gun by  Figiieroa,  the  best  and  ablest  of  the  Mexican  Governors. 
At  the  same  time  he  had  two  other  laws,  most  fundamentally  sub- 


600  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

\ersive  of  the  old  order  of  things,  to  carry  into  execution.  They 
were  the  law  for  the  political  organization  of  the  Territory,  being 
another  of  those  decreed  by  tlie  Spanish  Cortez  in  1813,  and  the 
law  of  colonization,  passed  by  the  Mexican  Congress  August  18th, 
1824,  with  the  executive  regulations,  prescribing  the  manner  of  its 
application,  dated  Xovember  21st,  1828. 

It  is  evident  that  this  is  the  true  era  of  revolution  in  Mexican 
California,  Observing  the  ancient  limits  of  the  Presidial  jurisdic- 
tions, municipal  governments  were  established  for  each  district. 
Authority  was  exercised  by  elective  bodies  called  Ayuntamientos, 
of  which  the  head  was  an  Alcalde  or  Judge.  This  body  regulated 
the  economy  of  the  whole  district,  directly  of  the  pueblo  in  which 
it  resided,  and  of  every  other  pueblo  in  the  district,  through  the  in- 
tervention of  local  and  subordinate  Ayuntamientos.  This  was  the 
separation  of  the  civil  functions  from  the  military  functions,  both 
of  which  had  been  continued  in  the  hands  of  tlie  commanders  of 
the  Presidios,  as  in  the  Spanish  times.  Here  in  San  Francisco, 
and  for  all  the  region  north  of  San  Mateo  creek,  east  indefinitely, 
and  west  to  the  ocean,  the  separation  of  powers  took  place  in 
December,  1834,  at  which  time  the  Ayuntamiento  was  established 
for  the  civil  government  of  this  Presidial  district,  and  Gen.  M. 
G.  Yallejo,  then  in  command  of  the  Presidio,  was  left  with  only 
his  military  command.  In  the  secularization  of  the  Missions, 
Pigueroa  advanced  so  far  as  to  put  administrators  in  possession 
in  iplace  of  the  Fathers,  at  which  stage  his  proceedings  were 
arrested  by  a  decree  of  the  Mexican  President.  Ruin  was  in- 
evitable ;  it  was  as  rapid  as  spoliation  could  make  it,  and  it  was 
soon  complete.  Governor  after  Governor  adopted  regulations  up- 
on regulations,  to  secure  a  faithful  administration  of  the  property 
of  the  Missions,  i.  e. ,  of  the  Christian  Indians  who  inhabited  them, 
and  by  whose  labor  all  had  been  built  and  accumulated.  It  was  to 
no  purpose ;  and  of  as  little  avail  was  the  partial  restoration  of  the 
Missions  to  the  charge  of  the  Fathers,  by  Micheltorena,  in  1843. 
The  Indian  was  by  nature  a  very  little  above  the  brute ;  the  Fath- 
ers were  not  able  to  elevate  him  in  spite  of  nature ;  the  administra- 
tors stripped  him  without  compunction;  and,  when  the  United 
States  conquered  the  country,  he  was  already  exterminated — his  de- 
struction complete  in  ten  years.  When  emancipation  began,  Figu- 
eroa  says  there  were  twenty  thousand  Christian  Indians  in  the 
Missions  of  California. 

Colonization  was  another  idea  introduced  by  the  Spanish  Cortez 
in  1813.  It  was  embodied  in  the  Mexican  law  of  colonization,  of 
1824.  The  scheme  was  to  reduce  all  the  public  lands  of  the  State 
to  private  property.  The  Spanish  rule  before  1813,  had  ever  been 
to  make  such  grants  the  exception,  and  to  retain  all  lands  generally 
speaking,  as  the  domain  of  the  King.  Other  Mexican  Governors 
may  have  made  informal  grants  of  which  nothing  appears,  but  Figu- 
eroa  was  the  first  to  inaugurate  the  system  of  which  we  find  the  rec- 
ords in  the  Archives.  He  established  a  course  of  proceedings  in 
exact  accordance  with  the  law  and  the  regulations,  and  adhered  to 


EDMUND    RANDOLPH.  601 

it  strictly  and  executed  it  conscientiously  and  with  great  intelli- 
gence. From  the  lands  subject  to  be  granted  are  excepted  such  as 
belong  to  Pueblos  and  Missions.  Of  Pueblos,  i.  e.  villages,  there 
were  but  two — San  Jose  and  Los  Angeles — or  three  including  the 
unprosperous  Villa  de  Branciforte.  Whatever  lands  these  owned 
were  at  their  foundation  surveyed,  marked  out,  and  set  apart  to 
them ;  and  then  recorded.  The  same  course  was  followed  with  such 
of  the  Presidios  as  Avere  converted  into  Pueblos,  as  at  Monterey;  and 
would  have  been  pursued  with  the  Missions  when  converted  into 
Pueblos,  if  that  change  bad  not  been  arrested.  In  these  cases 
there  could  have  been  no  uncertainty  as  to  what  lands  the  Governor 
could  grant.  With  the  Missions,  untouched,  or  incompletely  sec- 
ularized as  they  were  left,  there  was  difficulty.  The  title  of  the 
Indian  who  had  consented  to  become  a  Christian  and  a  civilized  man, 
binding  as  it  was  upon  the  King,  had  always  been  indefinite  as  to 
quantit}',  and  as  to  the  situation  of  his  lands,  save  that  it  should  be 
at  and  about  the  Mission  ;  in  which  essential  particulars  it  rested 
altogether  in  the  King's  discretion,  exercised  by  the  proper  officers 
of  his  government.  The  Mexican  Kepublic  stepped  into  the  same 
relation  to  these  Christian  Indians.  That  no  injustice  might  be 
done  them,  every  petition  was  referred  to  the  Priests,  and  after- 
wards to  the  Administrators  of  the  Missions.  They  were  asked 
whether  the  grant  could  be  made  without  prejudice  to  the  Indians. 
As  they  replied,  so  were  the  grants  given  or  withheld.  So  it  was 
at  least  in  Figueroa's  day,  and  that,  no  matter  how  far  the  land  pe- 
titioned-for  was  from  the  nearest  Mission.  Other  Governors  were 
neither  so  exact  nor  so  conscientious  as  Figueroa.  And  as,  in  the 
hands  of  the  Administrators  to  whom  they  were  delivered  over,  the 
Missions  went  rapidly  down  to  complete  iniin,  it  is  evident  that  the 
lands  required  for  the  Indians  would  become  continually  less — such 
would  be,  and  was,  the  answer  of  their  new^  guardians  to  the  inquiries 
of  the  Governor — and  finally  all  was  granted,  and  in  some  cases,  it 
is  alleged,  even  the  Missions  themselves.  Their  cattle,  without  the 
aid  of  a  grant  from  the  Governor,  took  the  same  course.  It  is  not 
too  much  to  say  that  when  the  United  States  in  184G  took  posses- 
sion of  the  country,  they  found  it  j)assing  through  a  conquest  still 
raw  and  incomplete.  It  was  the  conquest  of  the  Missions  and  the 
Christian  Indians,  by  the  settlers  of  the  Presidios  and  Pueblos  who 
at  first  had  been  introduced  into  the  country  mainly  for  their  bene- 
fit ;  to  aid  the  King  and  the  Church  in  carrying  out  their  pious  and 
humane  intentions  towards  them.  Yet  it  was  well  that  it  was  so. 
W^ho  that  looks  upon  the  native  Digger  Indian  could  wish  that  a 
superior  race  should  be  sacrificed  or  postponed  for  his  benefit?  W^e 
contemplate  a  miserable  result  of  the  work  begun  with  so  much 
zeal  and  heroism  in  1769.  But  because  they  failed,  we  none  the  less 
respect  the  motives  and  the  laborers,  whether  of  Church  or  State. 

The  unworthiness  of  the  Californian  Indian  did  not  altogether 
deprive  him  of  sympathy.  Every  Government  expressed  some  feel- 
ing at  seeing  him  hasten  so  rapidly  to  his  wretched  end.  And  the 
just  and  kind-hearted  Figueroa  battled  for  him  manfully.     In  the 


602  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

midst  of  the  complex  labors  of  his  administration  he  was  almost 
crushed  by  the  arrival  of  three  hundred  persons,  for  whom  he  had 
to  make  provision,  without  resources,  and  who  came  under  the 
charge  of  a  Director  of  Colonization,  instructed-  by  the  Supreme 
Government,  at  that  time  radically  democratic,  to  begin  operations  by 
taking  possession  of  the  property  of  the  Missions  and  admitting  the 
nev/  colonists  to  a  division  of  it  with  the  Indians.  During  the  win- 
ter of  1834-5,  Figueroa  and  tho  Director  carried  on  an  animated  dis- 
cussion in  writing,  on  the  subject  of  the  last  of  these  propositions. 
Figueroa  maintained  that  the  Missions  were  the  private  projoerty  of 
the  Indian,  and  protected  from  invasion  by  the  Constitution.  The 
Director  insisted  u]pon  the  letter  of  the  order  of  the  Supreme  Gov- 
ernment. Figueroa  said  it  was  improvident,  and  refused  to  obey  it 
until  he  could  make  a  representation  to  the  Supreme  Government 
on  the  subject.  The  end  was,  that  some  of  the  partizans  of  the  Di- 
rector attempted  an  insurrection  at  Los  Angeles,  in  the  spring  of 
1835,  which  was  easily  suppressed,  but  furnished  Figueroa  the  op- 
portunity to  send  the  Director  and  the  heads  of  his  faction  back  to 
Mexico.  Of  these,  the  principal  was  the  same  man  who  had  been 
sent  out  of  California  by  Victoria  for  the  same  cause — a  desire  to 
have  a  part  in  the  secularization  of  the  Missions.  The  colony,  how- 
ever, remained,  and  though  numbering  but  three  hundred,  was  a 
great  addition  to  the  population  of  California  in  those  days.  Among 
them  we  find  the  names  of  several  persons  who  afterwards  became 
conspicuous  in  the  country — Joso  Abrego,  Jose  Ma.  Covarrubias, 
Augustin  Olvera,  and  Francisco  Guerrero. 

Figueroa  died  at  Monterey,  on  the  29th  of  September,  1835,  his 
death  being  probably  hastened  by  the  effect  of  the  anxiety  and  vex- 
ation of  this  controversy,  upon  a  constitution  already  broken.  At 
that  time  his  manifesto  to  the  Mexican  Republic,  in  which  he  gives 
a  clear  and  forcible  statement  of  the  whole  affair,  and  an  able  vin- 
dication of  his  conduct,  was  going  through  the  press  at  Monterey. 
His  death  seems  to  have  been  very  greatly  deplored  at  that  time, 
and  he  is  still  recognized  as  the  ablest  and  most  upright  of  the 
Mexican  Governors.  His  work  of  the  political  organization  of  Cal- 
ifornia lasted  but  a  little  while ;  it  fell  with  the  overthrow  of  the 
Federal  Constitution  of  1824,  by  Santa  Anna,  in  1836.  California 
then  became  a  Department :  Political  Chief  was  changed  into  Gov- 
EKNOR,  and  Territorial  Deputation  into  Departmental  Assembly. 

These  changes,  however,  were  not  fully  completed  in  California 
until  1839.  The  Department  of  the  Californias  w^as  then  divided  into 
three  districts ;  the  first  extending  from  the  frontier  of  Sonoma  to 
San  Luis  Obispo,  its  principal  point  or  seat  of  administration  being 
the  old  Mission  of  San  Juan,  on  the  Pajaro  river ;  the  second  dis- 
trict included  the  rest  of  Upper  California,  the  seat  of  its  adminis- 
tration being  the  city  of  Los  Angeles,  which  had  been  promoted  to 
that  rank  from  the  original  condition  of  a  Pueblo,  in  the  year  of 
1835  ;  and  the  third  comprised  Lower  California,  which,  after  a  sep- 
aration, was  now  re-united  with  Upper  California.  These  districts 
were  divided  each  into  two  Partidos,  of  which,  consequently,  there 


EDSIUND   RANDOLPH.  603 

were  four  in  Upper  California.  Ayuntamientos  were  abolished,  and 
a  Justice  of  the  Peace  substituted  in  each  Partido.  Por  the  whole 
district  there  was  a  Prefect,  who  resided  at  the  seat  of  the  Adminis- 
tration of  one  of  the  Partidos,  and  a  Sub-Prefect,  who  resided  at 
that  of  the  other  Partido.  In  1843  Micheltorena,  acting  under  ex- 
traordinary powers,  made  some  changes  in  this  system,  but  it  was 
substantially  restored  by  Pio  Pico,  in  1845,  when  again  Lower  Cal- 
ifornia was  thrown  off. 

With  Figueroa  everything  like  stability,  and  indeed  order, 
passed  away.  The  next  year  after  Figueroa's  death,  the  Califor- 
nians  drove  away  the  Governor;  and  Don  Juan  B.  Alvarado,  being 
at  that  time  President  of  the  Territorial  Deputation,  was  declared 
Governor.  After  this  was  done,  the  Dei^utation  went  one  step 
further,  and  on  the  7th  of  November,  1836,  passed  these  resolutions : 

(1.)  "California  is  declared  independent  of  Mexico  until  the 
re-establishment  of  the  Constitution  of  1824.'* 

(2.)  "California  is  erected  into  a  free  and  sovereign  State,  es- 
tablishing a  Congress,  &c.,  &c." 

Public  documents  for  a  while  were  headed  "Free and  Sovereign 
State  of  California. "  This  anomalous  state  of  things  lasted  until 
1838.  The  demands  of  the  Free  and  Sovereign  State  were  not  com- 
plied with,  nor  on  the  other  hand  was  the  Central  Government  dis- 
posed, or  perhaps  able,  to  push  the  controversy  to  extremes.  In 
1838,  Alvarado  was  appointed  Governor  arf  interim;  and  Constitu- 
tional Governor  in  1839,  when  we  have  seen  that  the  innovations  of 
Santa  Anna  took  effect.  Whilst  California  was  in  rebellion,  the 
President  of  Mexico  commissioned  Carlos  Antonio  Carillo,  as  Gov- 
ernor. Alvarado  refused  to  recognize  him,  and  accepted' the  aid  of 
a  i^arty  of  Americans  who,  since  the  time  of  Jedediah  Smith,  seem 
to  have  found  their  way  into  the  country.  Alvarado  prevailed  over 
Carillo ;  and  the  appointment  of  the  former  as  Governor  ad  interim 
compromised  the  difficulties  of  those  times.  Here  is  a  document 
relating  to  this  contest,  which  will  serve  to  illustrate  California 
warfare.  It  is  the  report  of  G^n  Jose  Castro  to  Governor  Alvarado, 
dated  the  28th  of  March,  1838. 

"  I  have  the  honor  to  announce  to  your  Excellency,  that  after  two  days  contin- 
ual firing  w  ithout  having  lost  hut  one  man,  the  enemy  took  to  flight,  under  cover  of 
night,  numbering  one  hundred  and  ten  men  ;  and  I  have  determined  to  dispatch 
one  company  of  mounted  Infantry,  under  the  command  of  Captain  Villa,  and 
another  of  Cavalry  lancers,  under  the  command  of  Captain  Cota,  in  their  pur- 
suit, remaining  myself,  with  the  rest  of  the  division,  and  the  Artillery,  to  guard 
this  point,  &c.,  &c." 

And  here  is  another  of  the  same  period.  It  now  appears  that 
the  Americans  who  resided  with  Alvarado  had  fallen  under  suspic- 
ion and  into  disfavor  at  about  the  time  that  their  chief  made  up 
his  differences  with  the  Central  Government,  and  received  his  com- 
mission as  Governor  ad  interim.  They  were  all  arrested,  some  fif- 
teen or  twenty  perhaps,  it  is  said  by  surprise,  and  sent  to  Mexico. 
Amongst  them  was  Mr.  Isaac  Graham,  of  Santa  Cruz.  This  paper 
will  also  serve  as  a  specimen  of  Calif  ornian  eloquence  at  that  period. 


604  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

and  I  commend  it  at  the  present  moment  as  a  model  to  our  politi- 
cal orators. 

Proclamation  m^vde  by  the  Undersigned  : — 

' '  Eternal  Glory  to  the  Illustrious  Champion  and  Liberator  of 
the  Department  of  Alta  California,  Don  Jos6  Castro,  the  Guardian 
of  Order,  and  the  Supporter  of  our  Superior  Government. 

Fellow-citizens  and  Friends  v  To-day,  the  eighth  of  IMay,  of  the  present  year  of 
1840,  has  been  and  will  be  eternally  glorious  to  all  the  inhabitants  of  this  soil,  in 
contemplating  the  glorious  expedition  of  our  fellow  countryman,  Don  Jose  Cas- 
tro, who  goes  to  present  himself  before  the  Superior  Government  of  the  Mexican 
nation,  carrying  with  him  a  number  of  suspicious  Americans  who,  under  the  mask 
of  deceit,  and  filled  with  ambition,  were  warping  us  in  the  web  of  misfortune ; 
plunging  us  into  the  greatest  confusion  and  danger  ;  desiring  to  terminate  the  life 
of  our  Governor  and  of  all  of  his  subalterns  ;  and  finally,  to  drive  us  from  our 
asylums  ;  from  our  country  ;  from  our  pleasures,  and  from  our  hearths. 

The  bark  which  carries  this  valorous  Hero  on  his  Grand  Commission,  goes 
filled  with  laurels  and  crowned  with  triumphs,  ploughing  the  waves  and  publish- 
ing in  distinct  voices  to  the  passing  billows  the  loud  vwas  and  rejoicings,  which 
will  resound  to  the  remotest  bounds  of  the  universe.  Yes,  fellow-citizens  and 
friends,  again  v.-e  say,  that  this  glorious  chief  should  have  a  place  in  the  innermost 
recesses  of  our  hearts,  and  be  held  as  dear  to  us  as  our  very  breath.  Thus  we  de- 
sire, and  in  the  name  of  all  the  inhabitants,  make  known  the  great  rejoicings  with 
which  v/e  are  filled,  giving,  at  the  same  time,  to  our  Superior  Government  the 
present  proclamation,  which  we  make  for  said  worthy  chief  ;  and  that  our  Governor 
may  remain  satisfied,  that  if  he  (Castro)  has  embarked  for  the  interior  of  the  Re- 
public, there  still  remain  under  his  (the  Governor's)  orders  all  his  fellow  country- 
men, companions  in  arms,  etc.,  etc." 

The  foregoing  is  signed  by  seTen  citizens  of  note  and  respecta- 
bility in  the  countiy.  ■  "W'hen  this  lamxl-lcden  yeesel  reached  San 
B  las,  the  Mexican  authorities  took  a  different  view  of  the  matter. 
They  put  Gen.  Castro  in  prison  and  Graham  and  his  companions  in 
the  best  hotel  in  the  place,  (he  says  a  palace)  and  entertained  them 
handsomely  until  they  could  send  them  back  to  California,  which 
they  did  g-t  the  expense  of  the  Government. 

In  1839,  Captain  John  A.  Sutter,  a  man  who  had  seen  many 
vicissitudes  and  adventures,  in  Europe  and  the  wilds  of  Ameri'^a, 
arrived  in  Calif oinia  from  the  Sandwich  Islands.  By  permission 
of  Governor  Alvarado  he  established  himself  in  the  valley  of  the 
Sacramento,  then  the  extreme  northern  frontier.  He  engaged  to 
protect  the  Mexican  settlements  extending  in  that  direction  under 
the  Colonization  Law  (the  only  vital  thing  left  of  the  Mexican  rule 
for  many  years)  from  the  incursions  of  the  Indians,  and  he  kept  his 
word. 

In  1841,  he  obtained  a  grant  of  land  himself,  and  built  a  fort 
which  soon  became  the  refuge  and  rallying  point  for  Americans 
and  Europeans  coming  into  the  country.  Over  all  these  Sutter,  by 
virtue  of  an  appointment  as  Justice  of  the  Peace,  exercised  what- 
ever government  there  was  beyond  the  law  of  the  rifle.  Practically 
his  powers  w^ere  as  indefinite  as  the  territorial  limits  of  his  jurisdic- 
tion. Amogst  those  who  early  gathered  around  Sutter,  we  find  the 
names  of  John  Bidwell,  who  came  in  1841,  and  Pierson  B.  Bead- 


EDMUND   RANDOLPH.  605 

ing  and  Samuel  J.  Hensley,  who  came  in  1843,  and  many  others 
well  known  at  the  present  day. 

The  Pioneers  of  that  day  all  bear  testimony  to  the  generosity 
of  Captain  Sutter,  at  a  time  when  his  fort  was  the  capitol  and  he 
the  Government  for  the  American  colony,  in  the  valley  of  the  Sac- 
ramento. In  1844,  the  number  of  this  population  had  come  to  be  so 
considerable  as  to  be  a  power  in  the  State.  In  the  revolution  which 
then  occurred,  Sutter  took  the  side  of  Governor  Micheltorena. 
But  before  he  marched  he  took  the  reasonable  precaution,  so  obvi- 
ously required  by  justice  to  his  men,  to  obtain  from  Micheltorena 
a  grant  of  the  land  for  which  they  had  respectively  joetitioned. 
Micheltorena  then  issued  the  document  known  as  the  General 
Title. 

In  this  document  he  declares  that  every  petition  upon  which 
Sutter,  in  his  capacity  of  Justice  of  the  Peace,  had  reported  favor- 
ably, should  be  taken  as  granted ;  and  that  a  copy  of  this  document 
given  to  each  petitioner,  should  serve  in  lieu  of  the  usual  formal 
grant.  This  done,  he  marched  to  the  south,  but  was  unfortunate, 
for  he  was  taken  prisoner,  and  Micheltorena  expelled  from  the 
country.     This  is  the  last  of  the  civil  wars  of  California. 

In  the  spring  of  1840,  General  Castro  in  the  North,  and  Pio 
Pico,  the  Governor,  in  the  South,  were  waxing  hot  against  each 
other,  and  preparing  for  new  conflicts,  when  the  apparition  of  Cap- 
tain Fremont  with  his  small  surveying  party  of  old  mountaineers,  and 
the  hardy  and  indomitable  Pioneers  of  the  Sacramento  Valley  and 
the  Bear  flag,  put  an  end  to  their  dissensions.  Castro  had  himself 
prepared  the  way  for  this  aggression,  by  driving  Fremont  and  his 
surveying  party  out  of  the  Mexican  settlements,  a  few  months  before. 
The  colony  on  the  Sacramento  necessarily  sympathized  with  Fre- 
mont :  and  rumors,  more  or  less  well  founded,  began  to  run  through 
the  valley,  of  hostile  intentions  towards  all  the  American  settlers. 
But  resentment  and  anticipations  of  evil  were  not  the  sole  cause  of 
this  movement.  There  can  not  now  be  a  doubt  that  it  was  prompt- 
ed, as  it  was  approved,  by  the  Government  of  the  United  States; 
and  that  Captain  Fremont  obeyed  his  orders  no  less  than  his  own 
feelings. 

Fremont  was  still  on  the  northern  side  of  the  Bay  of  San  Fran- 
cisco, when  the  American  flag  was  hoisted  at  Monterey,  on  the  ever- 
memorable  seventh  day  of  July,  1846. 

Before  the  war,  the  Government  of  the  United  States  had  fully 
determined,  so  far  as  that  matter  rested  with  the  Executive,  upon 
the  conquest  and  permanent  retention  of  California,  as  soon  as  the 
out-break  of  war  should  offer  the  opjiortunity.  Orders,  in  antici- 
pation of  war,  were  issued  to  that  effect,  and  it  was  under  these 
orders  that  California  was  actually  taken.  The  danger  of  that  day 
was,  that  England  would  step  in  before  us.  Her  ships  were  watch- 
ing our  ships  on  the  coast  of  Mexico.  The  British  pretext,  it  is 
said,  was  to  have  been  to  secure  an  equivalent  for  the  Mexican  debt 
due  to  British  subjects;  and  it  is  understood  that  there  was  a  party 
here  who  favored  this  design. 


606  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Because  Commodore  Sloat  did  not  rush  to  the  execution  of  the 
orders  issued  in  anticipation  of  war,  on  the  very  first  report  of  a 
collision  between  the  United  States  and  Mexico,  the  anxious  Secre- 
tary of  the  Navy,  dreading  to  lose  the  prize,  hotly  censured  him  in 
a  letter  which  reached  him  after  the  event  had  broken  the  sting  of 
its  reproaches,  and  served  only  to  assure  him  how  well  he  had  ful- 
filled the  wishes  of  his  government.  The  flag  of  the  United  States 
was  no  sooner  flying,  than  the  ColUngn'ood  entered  the  bay  of  Mon- 
terey. There  had  been  a  race  between  the  Collingwood  and  the 
Savannah.  What  a  moment  was  that  for  us,  and  for  the  world ! 
What  if  the  Collingwood  had  been  the  swifter  sailer,  and  Sloat  had 
found  the  English  flag  flying  on  the  shore!  What  if  we  had  been 
born  on  another  planet!  The  cast  was  for  England  or  the  United 
States,  and  when  the  die  turned  for  us,  the  interest  was  at  an  end. 

As  a  feat  of  arms,  the  conquest  of  California  was  nothing  for  a 
power  like  ours.  Even  more  feeble,  and  as  much  distracted  as  the 
rest  of  Mexico,  and  with  but  a  nominal  dependence  upon  the  Cen- 
tral Government,  but  a  very  little  force  was  sufficient  to  detach  Cal- 
ifornia forever  from  all  her  Spanish- American  connections.  What- 
ever of  military  credit  there  was,  is  due  to  the  Pioneers,  who,  under 
the  Bear  flag,  had,  before  they  heard  of  the  beginning  of  the  war, 
with  an  admirable  instinct  for  their  own  rights,  and  the  interests 
of  their  country,  rebelled  against  any  further  Mexican  misrule,  or  a 
sale  to  the  British.  The  loyalty  of  their  sentiments  was  beautifully 
illustrated  by  the  alacrity  with  which  they  relinquished  the  com- 
plete independence  which  appeared  to  be  within  their  grasp,  and 
turned  over  their  conquests,  and  the  further  service  of  their  rifles, 
to  the  country  which*  they  remembered  with  so  much  affection,  and 
a  government  from  which  they  would  suffer  themselves  to  look  for 
nothing  but  wisdom  and  strength,  and  a  tender  consideration  for 
the  rights  and  interests  of  the  Pioneer. 

For  three  years  and  a  half,  when  there  was  no  war,  and  for  near- 
ly two  years  after  there  was  a  declared  peace,  California  was  gov- 
erned, and  for  a  great  part  of  the  time  heavily  taxed,  by  the  execu- 
tive branch  of  the  government  of  the  United  States,  acting  through 
military  officers.  This  I  note  as  an  anomaly  in  the  experience  of 
the  citizens  of  this  Republic. 

California,  separated  from  Mexico,  a  new  people  began  to  come 
in  from  the  United  States  and  Europe.  But  California  was  remote, 
and  yet  but  little  understood.  Mr.  Webster  himself  spoke  of  her 
as  almost  worthless,  except  for  the  Bay  of  San  Francisco,  and  as 
though  the  soil  was  as  barren  and  thorny  as  the  rocks  of  Lower 
California.  Emigrants  came,  but  not  many — amongst  the  most  re- 
markable arrivals  being  the  ship  Brooklyn,  freighted  with  Mormons. 
The  soldiers  themselves  were  nothing  more  than  armed  colonists. 
And  everything  was  peaceful  and  dull,  until  suddenly,  when  no  man 
expected,  there  came  a  change  of  transcendent  magnitude. 


Gold  was  discovered  at  Coloma.     This  was  an  event  that  stirred 


EDMUND   RANDOLPH.  607 

tlie  heart  of  the  whole  world.  The  motives  which  pervade  and  most 
control  the  lives  of  men  were  touched.  All  the  impulses  that  spring 
from  necessity  and  hope  were  quickened;  and  a  movement  was  vis- 
ible amongst  mankind.  To  get  to  California,  some  crossed  over 
from  Buenos  Ayres  to  Valparaiso,  scaling  the  Andes.  The  Isthmus 
of  Darien  became  a  common  thoroughfare.  Peaceful  invaders  en- 
tered Mexico  at  every  point,  and  on  every  route  startled  the  drowsy 
muleteer  as  they  passed  over  to  the  Pacific  where  the  coast  was 
nearest,  or  pushed  on  directly  for  California.  Constant  caravans 
issued  from  our  own  borders,  traversed  every  intervening  prairie,  and 
explored  every  pass  and  gap  of  opposing  mountains.  As  the  long 
train  descended  to  the  valley,  perhajjs  the  foremost  wagon  is  driven 
by  an  old  man,  who,  when  he  was  a  boy,  moved  out  in  this  way 
from  Virginia  to  Kentucky;  and  passing  still  from  one  new  State  to 
another,  now  when  he  is  grown  gray,  halts  his  team  at  last  upon  the 
shores  of  the  Pacific.  Ships  sailed  from  every  port  on  the  globe. 
The  man  at  the  wheel,  in  every  sea,  steered  by  the  star  that  led  to 
San  Francisco.  So  came  the  emigrants  of  1849.  The  occupation 
of  California  was  now  complete,  and  she  became  a  part  of  the 
world. 

Eleven  years  are  passed.  "We  looked  out  upon  a  wide  expanse — 
unfenced,  unfilled — and  though  nature  was  lovely,  our  hearts  sank 
within  us.  Neither  the  priest  nor  the  ranchero  had  prepared  this 
country  for  our  habitation.  We  asked :  Who  shall  subdue  all  this  to 
our  uses?  W^e  look  again;  and  now,  upon  a  landscaj)e  checkered 
with  smiling  farms  and  dotted  with  cities  and  towns,  busy  and  hum- 
ming like  the  hive.  What  magic  is  it  that  has  wrought  this  change? 
On  every  hand,  with  one  acclaim,  comes  back  the  answer:  Labor, 
it  is  Labor.  Of  our  eleven  years,  here  is  the  lesson.  Man's  opin- 
ions and  his  passions  were  but  insolence  and  vanity.  Boasting  and 
praise  made  but  the  greatness  of  the  passing  day.  And  Labor,  only 
Labor,  has  survived.  However  silent,  however  humble  and  unseen, 
or  on  what  bestowed,  it  is  Labor  which  has  created  California,  and 
which  rules  us  at  this  hour.  With  our  own  eyes  this  we  have  seen, 
and  of  our  own  knowledge  we  know  the  lesson  to  be  as  true  as  it 
is  old. 

California  in  full  possession  of  the  white  man,  and  embraced 
within  the  mighty  area  of  his  civilization !  We  feel  the  sympathies 
of  our  race  attract  us.  We  see  in  our  great  movement  hithei'ward 
in  1849  a  likeness  to  the  times  when  our  ancestors,  their  wives  and 
little  ones,  and  all  their  stuff  in  wagons,  and  with  attendant  herds, 
poured  forth  by  nations  and  in  never-ending  columns  from  the  Ger- 
man forests,  and  went  to  seek  new  pastures  and  to  found  new  king- 
doms in  the  ruined  provinces  of  the  Roman  Empire:  or  when, 
swayed  by  another  inspiration,  they  cast  their  masses  upon  the 
Saracens,  and  sought  to  rescue  the  Sepulchre  of  Christ  from  the  in- 
fidels. We  recognize  that  we  are  but  the  foremost  rank  of  the 
multitude  which  for  centuries  has  held  its  unwavering  course  out  of 
Europe  ujoon  America,  in  numbers  still  increasing;  a  vast,  unnum- 
bered host,  self-marshaled,  leaderless,  and  innumerable,   moving 


608  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

onward  forever,  to  possess  and  people  another  continent :  separated 
but  in  space,  divided  but  by  the  accidents  of  manners,  of  language 
and  of  laws — from  Scandinavia  to  California — one  blood  and  one 
people.  Knowledge  is  but  the  conservation  of  his  thoughts,  art  but 
the  embodiment  of  his  conceptions,  letters  the  record  of  his  deeds. 
Man  of  our  race  has  crowned  the  earth  with  its  glory!  And  still  in 
the  series  of  his  works  you  have  founded  a  State.  May  it  be  great 
and  powerful  whilst  the  Ocean  shall  thunder  against  these  shores. 
You  have  planted  a  people;  may  they  be  prosperous  and  happy 
whilst  summers  shall  return  to  bless  these  fields  with  plenty.  And 
may  the  name  of  the  Pioneer  be  spoken  in  California  forever! 


MILTON  S.  LATHAM. 

j3y  ^udge  ^ayen  p.   fiAL,U 


UNDER  the  most  favorable  circumstances,  it  is  at  all 
times  a  very  difficult  task  to  write  a  biographical  sketch 
of  a  cotemporary.  This  difficulty  is  greatly  increased 
when  the  person  whom  you  would  portray  is  a  member 
of  the  same  community,  and  when  the  truthfulness  and 
fidelity  of  the  portrayal  must  be  submitted  to  the  im- 
partial judgment  of  those  who  have  enacted  important 
parts  in  the  drama  of  which  he  is  made  the  chief  charac- 
ter. The  prominent  events  in  the  career  of  the  individual 
under  consideration  are  of  such  recent  occurrence — are 
so  blended  and  identified  with  the  experience  of  every 
old  Californian — as  to  enable  the  chronicler  to  analyze 
his  subject  without  viewing  him  through  the  misty  haze 
of  remote  years,  and  to  comment  from  an  actual  and 
personal  knowledge  of  events. 

Mr.  Latham's  ancestors  came  to  America  in  the  May- 
floiver.  His  father  was  a  native  of  Virginia,  and  his  mother 
of  New  Hampshire.  He  was  born  in  the  State  of  Ohio 
on  the  23d  day  of  May,  1829,  and  was  fortunate  in  being 
the  son  of  a  gentleman  of  eminent  local  celebrity,  and  a 
person  of  liberal  education  and  a  generous  nature.  En- 
joying the  advantages  of  high  social  position,  professional 
distinction,  and  a  mind  adorned  and  enlarged  by  the  re- 
finements of  education,  his  father  appreciated  the  value 
of  thoroudi  education,  and  bestowed  upon  his  son  all 
^  39 


610        REPRESENTATIVE  MEN  OF  THE  PACIFIC. 

the  advantages  to  be  derived  from  cultivated  society  and 
collegiate  training. 

In  1846,  he  graduated  from  Jefferson  College,  Penn- 
sylvania, and  left  his  Alma  Mater  with  a  reputation  for 
scholarship,  energy,  and  industry,  that  gave  promise  of 
his  future  success  and  distinction.  Soon  after  graduat- 
ing, he  removed  to  Alabama,  where  he  studied  law. 
Having  chosen  the  law  for  a  profession,  his  earnest  devo- 
tion to  study,  his  aptitude  and  genius,  secured  him  license 
to  practice  at  an  early  age.  In  1848,  he  was  appointed 
Clerk  of  the  Circuit  Court  of  Russell  county,  Alabama. 

At  the  period  when  California  was  the  focus  of  public 
interest  and  attention,  Mr.  Latham  selected  the  Golden 
State  as  the  field  for  his  future  labors  and  aspirations. 
On  the  6th  of  April,  1850,  he  arrived  at  San  Francisco, 
and  at  once  entered  upon  the  active  practice  of  his  pro- 
fession. Sacramento  having  been  made  the  capital  of 
the  State,  many  of  our  most  eminent  lawyers  were  at- 
tracted thither,  and  Mr.  Latham  among  them.  His  ex- 
treme youth  attracted  general  sympathy.  His  suave  and 
genial  manners  made  him  universally  popular,  while  his 
abilities  commanded  respect  from  the  members  of  the 
bar  as  well  as  the  entire  community,  and  soon  secured 
him  a  very  profitable  business.  So  rapid  were  his  strides 
to  public  notice  and  favor  that  at  the  ensuing  general 
election  after  his  arrival  in  1850,  he  was  elected  by  a. 
very  large  majority  to  the  important  office  of  District 
Attorney  for  the  Sacramento  Judicial  District,  com- 
prising Sacramento  and  El  Dorado  counties.  His 
official  position  gave  him  an  enlarged  theatre  of  action 
and  a  more  extended  and  familiar  acquaintance  with  the 
people.  While  his  civil  practice  had  established  his  claim 
as  a  logical  and  philosophical  student  of  the  law,  his  op- 
portunities as  an  advocate  soon  won  him  a  reputation 
among  the  people  excelled  by  no  member  of  the  profes- 
sion in  the  State  at  that  day.  Indeed,  his  advancement 
was  so  great,  his  hold  upon  the  popular  mind  so  fixed, 
that  in  1851,  he  was  elected  Representative  to  Con- 
gress, triumphing  over  competitors  who  had  already 
established  a  national  fame. 


MILTON   S.    LATHAM.  611 

Mr.  Latham  fully  sustained  at  the  forum  of  Congress 
the  reputation  he  had  won  at  home ;  and  the  honored  at- 
titude he  occupied  toward  his  colleagues,  and  his  faithful 
efforts  to  secure  legislation  for  the  best  interests  of  Cali- 
fornia, were  rewarded  by  a  reelection,  and  he  remained 
her  representative  till  1856. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  the  affairs  of  the  Collect- 
orship  of  the  Port  of  San  Francisco  had  not  uniformly 
been  administered  so  as  to  give  entire  satisfaction  to 
either  public  or  private  judgment.  It  is  not  our  province 
to  discuss  political  subjects,  or  to  inquire  into  the  causes 
or  consequences  of  the  management  of  the  Collector's 
office,  that  gave  the  Government  extreme  solicitude  and 
difficulty  in  selecting  the  proper  person  to  take  charge 
of  the  office,  and  bring  "order  out  of  chaos."  It  is 
sufficient  to  say,  while  it  was  a  source  of  great  public 
satisfaction,  that  from  a  host  of  eager  aspirants,  Mr.  La- 
tham, unsolicited  and  in  fact  against  his  protest,  was  in- 
vited and  induced  to  accept  the  position.  This  dis- 
tinguished compliment  from  the  Government  was  based 
upon  the  character  for  honesty,  integrity,  and  fidelity  to 
duty  that  Mr.  Latham  had  won  in  his  Congressional 
career ;  and  he  acquired  additional  credit  and  honor  for 
the  exactness,  dispatch,  and  discipline  that  characterized 
every  department  of  the  Customs  during  his  administra- 
tion. 

Mr.  Latham  now  determined  to  ignore  the  blandish- 
ments of  office,  and  devote  himself  to  the  more  remuner- 
ative and  less  exciting  pursuit  of  private  business :  to  use 
his  own  words  on  a  memorable  occasion,  he  had  "resolved 
to  quit  Hhe  filthy  pool  of  politics.'"  These  hopes  of 
quiet  happiness  and  repose  were  not,  however,  to  be 
realized.  The  exciting  canvass  of  1859  snatched  him 
from  contemplated  retirement.  The  influence  of  their 
young  favorite  was  warm  in  the  hearts  of  the  people,  and 
they  determined  to  manifest  their  approval  of  his  past 
stewardship  by  the  bestowal  of  yet  higher  honors.  In 
that  year  he  was  nominated  for  Governor  of  California 
by  the  Democratic  State  Convention,  (his  principal  com- 
petitor being  Hon.  John  B.  Weller)  and  was  elected  by  a 


612  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

very  large  majority,  receiving  over  60,000  votes — his  com- 
petitors being  Hon.  John  Currey,  afterwards  Supreme 
Judge,  and  Hon.  Leland  Stanford,  afterwards  Governor 
of  the  State. 

It  was  incumbent  on  the  Legislature,  which  was  chosen 
at  the  same  general  election,  and  which  convened  in  Janu- 
ary, 1860,  to  elect  a  successor  to  the  Hon.  David  C.  Brod- 
erick.  United  States  senator,  then  lately  deceased.  This 
important  matter  elicited  a  degree  of  political  feeling  and 
public  interest  unwonted  even  in  the  arena  of  California 
politics.  Those  national  questions  that  finally  culminated 
in  the  Great  Rebellion  were  then  being  everywhere  dis- 
cussed. All  felt  the  absolute  necessity  of  having  a  repre- 
sentative in  the  United  States  Senate  who  should  be  a 
representative  in  fact — not  merely  of  California  or  of  a 
political  party — but  of  the  patriotic  impulses  of  the 
people  at  large.  In  this  great  crisis,  the  Shakesperean 
theory  of  fortune  was  fulfilled,  and  Mr.  Latham  became 
the  recipient  of  her  gifts.  Scarcely  had  he  assumed  the 
office  of  Governor  and  delivered  his  inaugural,  when  he 
was  called  on  to  resign  and  assume  the  senatorial  toga. 
Mr.  Latham  presented  his  credentials  and  took  his  seat  in 
the  United  States  Senate  in  March,  1860,  and  served  in 
the  Senate  until  March  4th,  1863. 

This  brief  summary  of  events  affords  an  eulogy  of 
which  any  man  might  be  justly  proud;  and  a  lengthened 
commentary  upon  them  would  be  a  work  of  supererogation. 
Justice  to  distinguished  merit,  admiration  for  the  unparal- 
leled promotion  to  conspicuous  and  exalted  station  that 
mark  the  career  of  Mr.  Latham,  would  seem  to  warrant, 
if  not  exact,  some  further  comment. 

Upon  Mr.  Latham's  advent  in  California,  already  at- 
tracted to  her  shores  was  a  population  above  every  other 
people  of  America  distinguished  for  their  dash,  intelli- 
gence, and  enterprise.  Among  them  were  to  be  found 
able  representatives  of  every  profession,  trade,  and  calling 
— Professors  of  Colleges,  ex-Governors,  and  Members  of 
Congress,  divines  and  lawyers — who  had  become  noted 
throughout  the  country.  These,  according  to  their  various 
tastes  and  avocations,  were  earnest  rivals,  struggling  in 


MILTON    S.    LATHMf.  613 

the  most  exciting  and  eager  race  of  life  the  world  ever 
witnessed.  The  phantom  of  wealth — the  spur  of  necessity 
— the  hopes  of  ambition — seemed  to  cauterize  human 
nature  and  freeze  the  heart  against  all  impulses  of  gen- 
erous emulation,  and  make  every  man  an  uncompro- 
mising competitor.  To  succeed  in  such  a  contest,  to  win 
and  command  the  warm  sympathy  of  the  people,  and  to 
retire  from  the  struggle  with  their  abiding  confidence 
and  trust,  was  to  create  .a  monument  more  enduring  than 
any  entablature  graven  on  steel  or  adamant;  and  affords 
a  model  well  worthy  the  imitation  of  the  youth  of  our 
country. 

'No  man  in  America  has  filled  so  many  important 
offices  in  so  brief  a  time  as  has  Mr.  Latham,  and  history 
affords  no  example  among  our  countrymen  of  a  person 
at  his  age  having  filled  such  high  stations.  At  that  age 
when  most  men  plume  themselves  for  the  highest  flights 
of  ambition,  Mr.  Latham  has  successively  filled  the  most 
honorable  positions  within  the  gift  of  the  people.  To 
what  peculiar  trait  of  character  or  special  qualification 
we  must  attribute  his  extraordinary  career,  it  would  be 
difficult  to  determine. 

In  his  social  character,  he  is  dignified  ^vithout  stiff- 
ness, impressive  without  dictation,  genial  without  levity, 
and  companionable  without  familiarity.  In  business  en- 
gagements other  than  professional,  his  accustomed  suc- 
cess has  followed  his  efforts,  and  he  now  enjoys  a  hand- 
some fortune.  He  is  now  Manager  of  the  London  and 
San  Francisco  Bank,  which  institution  flourishes  under 
his  direction.  As  a  popular  orator,  he  has  no  superior 
on  this  coast,  and  the  result  of  many  a  political  canvass 
in  this  State  has  been  influenced  by  the  powers  of  his 
eloquence. 

We  have  to  regret  that  our  limited  space  will  not 
permit  us  to  give  extracts  from  his  speeches  in  Congress, 
for  he  spoke  to  almost  every  question  of  national  im- 
portance that  rose  during  that  exciting  period ;  as  they 
would  adorn  these  pages,  and  carry  with  them  proofs  of 
tlie  genius  and  ability  of  their  author. 

As  a  representative  man,  Mr.  Latham  is  a  fair  type 


614  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

of  California,  her  people,  genius,  and  extraordinary  ex- 
pansion. As  she,  without  the  preliminary  forms  of 
territorial  existence,  sprang  almost  immediately  into 
the  condition  of  a  great  State,  so  did  he  seem  to 
defy  the  ordeal  of  probation  through  which  mankind 
usually  pass  in  the  vicissitudes  of  fortune,  and  stepped 
forth  from  his  minority  into  a  manhood  of  established 
fame. 

"  Palmam  qui  meruit  ferat." 


>*^  or  Ti£a    ' 


^. 


ROBERT   B.   SWAIN 

By  WiLJLiAM  y.  Wells. 


THE  reputation  for  enterprise,  intelligence,  and  liberal- 
ity which  San  Francisco  in  her  remarkable  growth 
has  acquired  abroad,  is  undoubtedly  due,  more  than  to 
any  other  class,  to  her  merchants.  The  same  may  be 
true  of  most  communities,  where  commerce  is  the  vital 
element  of  their  prosperity ;  but  it  is  especially  so  in  one 
whose  merchants  have  always  exerted  the  chief  influence 
in  directing  the  policy  of  municipal  or  State  government, 
in  shaping  congressional  legislation  relating  to  the  Pacific 
coast,  and  giving  the  tone  to  public  sentiment  and  meas- 
ures. In  this  lightj  biographical  sketches  of  commercial 
men  long  identified  with  the  city,  assume  something  of 
historical  value,  as  inseparably  connected  with  its  material 
and  social  progress.  For  many  years  Mr.  Swain  has  been 
known  as  a  prominent  merchant  of  San  Francisco,  filling, 
during  that  time,  positions  of  the  highest  responsibility, 
political  and  social,  and  honorably  associated  with  import- 
ant movements.  The  records  of  societies  organized  for 
literary,  religious,  and  benevolent  purposes,  are  silent  test- 
imonials of  his  activity  in  charitable  w^orks;  while  to  pub- 
lic discussions  of  maritime  questions,  he  brings  a  qiuckness 
of  perception  and  a  familiarity  with  those  subjects,  only 
to  be  acquired  through  business  talent  of  a  high  order 
joined  to  great  experience.  It  is  not,  however,  from  a 
merely  commercial  stand-point  that  we  propose  to  sketch 


616  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

Mr.  Swain.  In  the  last  ten  years  his  name  has  been 
interwoven  with  men  and  events  which  have  become  cel- 
ebrated, and  the  character  before  us  is  thus  additionally 
representative. 

Mr  Swain,  who  is  of  Quaker  origin,  was  born- about 
the  year  1825,  in  JN'antucket,  Mass.,  his  island  home  front- 
ing upon  the  rude  Atlantic,  and  his  earliest  assodations 
having  been  among  rugged  and  adventurous  seamen.  At 
the  age  of  seventeen,  he  went  to  New  York,  and  becoming 
a  clerk  in  the  famous  house  of  Grinnell,  Minturn  &  Co., 
received  a  thorough  mercantile  education.  In  1855,  fail- 
ing health,  caused  by  a  too  close  attention  to  an  extensive 
commission  business,  in  which,  after  having  remained  with 
the  above  named  firm  for  many  years,  he  had  embarked 
for  himself,  obliged  him  to  seek  a  milder  climate,  and  in 
that  year  he  came  to  California  intending  to  remain  only 
long  enough  to  ensure  a  restoration  to  health.  Increasing 
interests  and  duties,  however,  required  a  longer  stay,  and 
here  he  has  ever  since  found  his  field  of  labor,  pursuing 
his  legitimate  business  of  Commission  Merchant  and  Fire 
and  Marine  Insurance  Agent.  His  sphere  of  occupation 
speedily  displayed  an  ability  and  readiness  of  application 
to  diverse  subjects  in  the  walks  of  social  and  business  life, 
and  he  was  evidently  destined  to  be  a  leading  man  in  the 
State  of  his  adoption.  Soon  after  his  arrival,  he  was 
elected  a  Trustee  of  the  Mercantile  Library  Association 
of  San  Francisco,  and  thenceforth  served  that  institution 
in  various  capacities,  having  for  the  past  four  years  been 
either  President  or  Yice  President.  He  has  been  untir- 
ing in  his  labors  to  subserve  the  interests  of  the  Library, 
and  his  disinterested  efforts  while  presiding  over  its  wel- 
fare indicate  a  painstaking  care  for  its  advancement.  On 
the  inauguration  of  the  new  Library  building  in  June, 
],§68,  Mr.  Swain  thus  concluded  a  speech,  in  which  he 
had  proposed  at  some  length  a  plan  for  bonding  the  debt 
of  the  Association,  which  bonds  he  trusted  would  be  event- 
ually liquidated  by  the  donations  of  zealous  and  liberal 
minded  citizens: 

Of  the  ultimate  success  of  this  scheme,  the  Trustees  have  not  a 
thread  of  doubt,  and  it  now  remains  to  be  seen  whether  the  people 


ROBERT   B.    SWAIN.  617 

of  this  city  will  at  once  second  tlieir  efforts;  whether  the  people  of 
tliis  city  are  alive  to  the  necessity  of  a  literar}^  centre  like  this,  which 
is  destined  to  work  a  silent  but  potent  influence  ujion  the  morals 
cf  the  community  and  the  futui-e  prosperity'  of  the  State;  whether 
the  fathers  and  mothers  who  have  sons  ripening-  to  manhood,  and  to 
whom  membership  in  this  Association  may  be  a  matter  of  vital  con- 
sequence, are  anxious  that  their  talents  and  energies  be  not  wasted 
on  selfish  and  ignoble  objects;  whether  they  prefer  for  their  sons 
the  reading-room  to  the  race-course — the  sure  delight  of  books  to  the 
uncertainties  of  the  gaming  table — literary  pleasure  to  licentious  in- 
dulgence— and  the  cultivation  of  a  refined  and  ennobling  taste  to 
mere  sensuous  weakness  and  fashionable  frivolity. 

Afterwards,  wlien  the  Mercantile  Library  was  threat- 
ened with  extinction  by  reason  of  a  crushing  indebted- 
ness, this  appeal  presented  itself  with  renewed  force.  In 
the  efforts  to  rescue  the  institution  from  its  financial  dif- 
ficulties, ^Ir.  Swain,  who  was  still  its  President,  took 
an  active  part,  devoting  valuable  time  to  the  subject,  and 
originating  numerous  practical  suggestions  to  that  end. 

In  New  York  he  had  been  an  intimate  friend  and 
parishioner  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Bellows,  and  joining  the 
First  Unitarian  Church  on  his  arrival  at  San  Francisco, 
he  at  once  became  influential  as  an  executive  member, 
and  was  soon  after  elected  President  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees,  an  office  which  he  continued  to  hold  for  ten 
years.  While  he  was  filling  this  position,  it  became 
necessary  in  1859  to  select  a  new  pastor  for  the  Society. 
Mr.  Swain  at  once  placed  himself  in  communication  with 
the  Rev.  T.  Starr  King,  then  in  pastoral  charge  of  the 
Hollis  street  church  in  Boston,  the  result  of  which  was 
that  Mr.  King  consented  to  transfer  his  labors  and  in- 
fluence to  the  Pacific  coast.  A  portion  of  this  corre- 
spondence appears  in  an  address  delivered  by  Mr.  Swain 
before  the  Society  in  1864,  and  published  by  request.  It 
forms  a  most  interesting  chapter  in  the  life  of  the  eminent 
divine,  a  few  days  after  whose  death,  and  in  whose  mem- 
ory it  was  delivered;  and  in  its  style  and  matter,  the 
afiecting  and  beautiful  tribute  is  highly  creditable  to  the 
oratorical  powers,  as  well  as  the  liberal  Christian  spirit 
of  Mr.  Swain.  In  the  spring  of  1860,  Mr.  King  arrived, 
and  from  that  time  until  March,  1864,  the  date  of  his 
decease,  he  found  in  Mr.  Swain  his  wisest  and  closest  ad- 


618  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

viser  and  friend.  Indeed,  from  the  time  of  his  landing 
in  San  Francisco,  the  two  were  ahnost  inseparable,  and 
this  intimate  companionship  may  be  said  to  have  imbued 
our  subject  with  his  highest  aspirations  and  worthiest 
aims  in  life.  The  sketch  of  that  great  man  elsewhere  in 
these  pages,  renders  unnecessary  any  further  allusion  to 
this  particular  point.  Truly  fortunate  was  the  advent  of 
Mr.  King  in  San  Francisco,  not  only  for  the  church  which 
he  raised  out  of  bankruptcy  by  the  magic  of  his  genius, 
but  for  the  State  and  the  country ;  for  to  the  splendor  of 
his  eloquience  is  largely  owing  the  sentiment  which  saved 
California  from  the  vortex  of  secession  and  the  horrors 
of  civil  war.  Since  his  arrival  in  California,  Mr.  Swain 
has  seen  the  affairs  of  the  Unitarian  Society  changed  from 
the  most  deplorable  financial  aspect  to  one  of  flourishing 
prosperity — a  result  traceable  in  no  small  degree  to  his 
own  prudent  management  and  unwearied  efforts.  About 
the  time  of  his  retiring  from  the  Presidency  of  the  Board 
of  Trustees,  the  pews  rented  for  a  premium  of  $24,750 
above  the  annual  assessments,  amounting  to  $12,000; 
enabling  the  society  to  wipe  out  entirely  the  debt  of  the 
church,  which  had  lingered  along  from  the  time  the  new 
edifice  had  received  the  shock  of  its  illustrious  builder's 
decease  two  months  after  it  was  consecrated.  Mr.  Swain 
resigned  only  when  the  society  was  free  from  debt. 

Although  frequently  solicited  to  serve  in  a  public 
capacity,  having  been  several  times  applied  to  by  nomi- 
nating conventions  to  become  a  candidate  for  Senate  and 
Assembly,  he  invariably  refused.  While  claiming  to  be 
an  ardent  and  original  Republican,  he  shrunk  from  con- 
tact with  the  coarser  machinery  of  politics,  preferring  the 
dignity  of  his  own  calling  as  a  merchant  and  his  books, 
to  active  participation  for  personal  ends  in  a  political 
canvass.  Early  in  1863,  he  was  appointed,  without  solici- 
tation, and  as  we  believe  without  his  knowledge.  Superin- 
tendent of  the  United  States  Branch  Mint  at  San  Fran- 
cisco- Following  the  rule  that  had  invariably  guided  him 
hitherto,  he  hesitated  before  accepting,  but  finally  yielded 
at  the  request  of  many  citizens  and  all  the  officers  of  the 
Mint.     The  complimentary  manner  in  which  the  office 


ROBERT   B.    SWAIN.  619 

was  tendered  by  President  Lincoln,  would  scarcely  have 
justified  a  refusal. 

The  office  upon  which  Mr.  Swain  now  entered  has  of 
late  years  come  to-  be  regarded  as  more  strongly  identified 
with  the  interests  of  California  than  any  other  in  the  gift 
of  the  Federal  Government.  It  has  been  a  reliable  bank 
of  deposit  for  the  miner,  with  a  capital  of  thousands  of 
millions  behind  it  for  security,  and  to  some  extent  the 
regulator  of  finance  on  the  Pacific  coast.  The  position 
was  no  sinecure.  The  Mint  is  a  hard-working  mill,  with 
the  glare  and  heat  of  a  chemist's  laboratory.  It  has  never 
been  a  stepping-stone  to  political  preferment;  it  has  never 
been  a  school  for  Senators  or  Congressmen.  It  requires 
skilled  labor  and  scientific  attainment.  The  amount  of 
work  done  within  its  walls  may  be  imagined  from  the  fact 
that  since  its  creation  in  1854  not  far  from  three  hundred 
millions  of  dollars,  or  more  than  half  the  sum  coined 
by  the  Philadelphia  Mint  since  1793,  has  been  struck  from 
its  presses.  Mr.  Swain's  management  of  the  vast  funds 
placed  in  his  charge,  merits  a  much  more  lengthy  and 
detailed  description  than  can  be  here  devoted  to  the  sub- 
ject. In  the  manipulation  of  the  precious  metals,  the 
Government  supposes  that  there  will  be  a  considerable 
natural  loss  or  wastage,  and  accordingly  a  large  allowance 
is  given  by  law  to  the  officers  of  the  Mint  for  that  purpose. 
Although  in  some  years,  under  a  previous  administration, 
this  allowance  had  not  only  been  exhausted  but  largel}^ 
exceeded,  under  that  of  Mr.  Swain  the  loss  in  no  year 
was  ever  more  than  a  few  hundred  dollars,  showing  the 
nation  an  instance  in  which  a  great  public  trust  was 
conducted  as  honestly  and  thoroughly  as  any  private 
business.  It  has  been  said  of  Mr.  Swain,  that  ''  he  has 
succeeded  in  accomplishing  what  few  men  ever  accomplish 
— administering  a  department  of  the  government  service 
so  as  to  disarm  party  animosity,  and  leave  no  place  for 
criticism  to  hang  a  complaint  upon."  In  assuming  control, 
he  resolved  to  be  uninfluenced  by  cliques,  combinations, 
or  parties.  Of  course,  tremendous  pressure  was  brought 
to  bear  for  places,  but  office  brokers  and  office  hunters 
soon  learned  that  the  new  Superintendent  could  not  be 


620  EEPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

used  as  a  tool.  While  demanding  that  the  employes 
should  be  unconditionally  loyal  to  the  Government,  in- 
tegrity, capacity,  and  faithfulness,  were  the  chief  requis- 
ites. The  Mint  was  a  branch  of  the  Government  espe- 
cially requiring  the  public  confidence,  and  he  steadily 
refused  to  permit  it  to  be  prostituted  to  political  ends  ; 
and  this  course  met  the  entire  approval  of  Mr.  Lincoln 
and  of  several  Secretaries  of  the  Treasury.  The  re- 
markable success  of  Mr.  Swain  in  the  discharge  of  his 
duties  for  six  years,  we  think,  may  in  a  great  measure  be 
attributed  to  this  polic}^ 

After  holding  the  position  for  about  two  years,  con- 
sulting rather  his  own  tastes  and  inclinations  than  the 
notoriety  of  public  station,  he  tendered  his  resignation 
of  the  Superintendency.  It  may  be  that  this  course 
partly  grew  out  of  an  honest  indignation  in  his  own 
breast  at  the  persistent  misrepresentations  by  persons 
anxious  to  supplant  him,  to  meet  which  Mr.  Swain,  with 
becoming  dignity  and  conscious  rectitude,  would  not 
descend  to  a  contradiction.  The  letter  was  sent  without 
the  knowledge  of  his  many  friends  and  the  public  gen- 
erally. His  popularity  and  the  estimation  in  which  his 
services  were  held  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  as  soon  as  it 
became  known  that  his  resignation  was  in  the  hands  of 
the  Department  at  Washington,  a  paper,  signed  by  all 
the  bankers  and  many  of  the  leading  merchants  of  San 
Francisco,  was  presented  to  him,  requesting  that  he 
withdraw  the  document,  and  a  dispatch  from  the  same 
gentlemen  in  reference  to  the  matter  was  also  sent  to 
Secretary  McCulloch.  By  a  singular  coincidence,  this 
dispatch  was  crossed  on  the  wires  by  one  from  the  Sec- 
retary himself  preferring  the  same  request  to  Mr.  Swain. 
Thus  urged,  he  consented  to  retain  his  place  at  the  head 
of  the  Mint,  which  he  continued  to  hold  until  the  sum- 
mer of  1869 — his  administratien  of  its  affairs  compelling 
the  unqualified  endorsement  of  the  Department,  while 
the  character  and  unimpeachable  integrity  of  the  Super- 
intendent was  made  the  theme  for  special  encomium  on 
the  floors  of  Congress. 

In  1865,  Mr.  Swain  was  one  of  the  founders,  in  con- 


EGBERT   B.    SWAIN.  621 

junction  with  other  philanthropic  gentlemen,  of  the  San 
Francisco  Benevolent  Association,  which  patterns  after  a 
like  society  in  New  York  known  as  the  ''Association  for 
Improving  the  Condition  of  the  Poor."  Of  this  institu- 
tion Mr.  Swain  has  been  the  President  from  the  date  of 
its  organization.  At  its  first  anniversary  meeting  in 
May,  1866,  in  an  address  to  the  members,  he  gave  a 
graphic  statement  of  the  scope  of  the  Society's  useful- 
ness and  charities  during  the  year  then  just  ended.  Mr. 
Swain  said: 

It  is  not  permitted  to  the  trustees  to  relate  in  detail  the  facts  that 
have  been  gathered  bearing  on  the  extent  and  natui'e  of  indigence 
and  suffering  in  our  city,  because  a  proper  regard  for  the  peculiar 
sensitiveness  of  the  poor  has  imposed  upon  them  the  obligation  of 
secrecy.     But  if  I  could  di^oilge  a   tithe  of  the  information  which 
we  have  gained — if  I  could  tell  of  the  poverty  and  despair  that  is 
nurtured  in  our  very  midst — of  the  squalid  destitution  prevailing  here 
— which  exists  not  a  stone's  throw  from  the  abodes  of  wealth  and 
splendor — if  I  could  make  known  to  the  generous-minded  people  of 
this  city  how,  through  the  gentle  beneficence  of  this  society,  which 
is  but  the  wise  concentration  of  the  individual  charities  of  the  mem- 
bers, anguish  has  been  assuaged,  bleeding  hearts  cured,  widowed 
mothers  assisted  to  the  necessaries  of  life,  hungry  little  children  fed, 
and  their  delicate,  naked  bodies  clothed  against  the  wet  and  cold; 
if  I  could  relate  a  small  portion  of  the  tales  of  wretchedness  and 
woe  that  have  been  whispered  into  the  ears  of  the  officers — tales  of 
disappointed  ambition,  buried  hopes  and  expectations,  blasted  for- 
tunes, unexpected  penury  and  discouraged  hearts;   and  if  I  could 
paint  a  picture  of  the  army  of  houseless,  homeless,  hungiy,  shiver- 
ing, dejected,  sorrow-stricken  people  whose  sufferings  they  have  re- 
lieved, and  some  of  whom  have  been  raised  from  the  slough  of  des- 
pond beyond  the  necessity  of  further  aid — if  I  could  present  such 
pictures  as  these  to  the  full  gaze  of  a  kind,  indulgent  public — pictures 
w^hich  have  had  their  reality  in  the  experience  of  this  Association — I 
am  sure  that  parents  who  remembered  their  children,  men  who  have 
wives,  women  who   have   husbands   upon  whom,  perhaps   in   this 
capricious  age,  fortune  may  one  day  frown — I  am  sure  that  such 
would  never  allow  this  Society  to  w^ant  for  funds.     For  its  scope  is 
broad  and  cathohc.     It  extends  the  hand  of  charity  to  all.     It  is  no 
resjDecter  of  persons,  color  or  race.     Whether  the  applicant  be  Jew 
or  Gentile,  Greek  or  Roman,  American  or  foreign,  black  or  white, 
young  or  old,  Protestant  or  Catholic — whatever  the  sex,  whatever 
the  sect,  whatever  the  skin,  so  long  as  it  is  a  being  bearing  the 
impress  of  humanity  and  made  in  the  image  of  God,  the  case  re- 
ceives immediate  attention  according  to  its  nature  and  exigency. 
Nor  does  it  supersede  existing  charities,  but  it  cooperates  with  them, 
and  so  far  as  is  practicable,  makes  them  the  more  available  to  those 


G22  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

for  whom  tliey  are  designed.  The  work  which  it  performs  is  various. 
Some  are  furnished  with  food,  some  with  fuel,  some  with,  clothing. 
Some  are  assisted  in  the  payment  of  rents,  who  would  otherwise  with 
their  children  be  turned  houseless  into  the  streets.  Some  are  as- 
sisted to  employment;  some  furnished  with  the  means  to  reach 
distant  relations,  who  will  care  for  them;  and  in  one  instance,  to 
illustrate  the  scope  and  breadth  and  comprehensiveness  of  this 
Society,  a  beneficiary — a  very  excellent  woman — was  provided  with 
a  worthy  husband,  with  whom  she  is  now  living  happily. 

To  many  public  charities  during  the  last  ten  years^ 
Mr.  Swain  has  been  a  contributor,  and.  of  several  to  this 
day  an  active  working  member,  devoting  time,  money, 
and  labor  to  alleviating  the  necessities  of  his  fellow- 
creatures.  At  the  Southern  Relief  Meeting  held  in 
April,  1867,  in  San  Francisco,  he  was  one  of  the  officers, 
and  took  a  prominent  part  by  word  and  action  in  for- 
warding the  object  of  the  assemblage;  during  the  war, 
he  was  an  indefatigable  member  of  the  Sanitary  Commit- 
tee ;  for  many  years  he  has  been  Secretary  of  the  Board 
of  Trustees  of  the  Ladies'  Protection  and  Relief  Society ; 
is  Treasurer  of  the  San  Francisco  Lying-in  Asylum  and 
Foundling  Hospital,  and  an  officer  in  several  other  chari- 
table institutions  that  need  not  be  mentioned.  In  the 
debates  and  proceedings  of  the  San  Francisco  Chamber 
of  Commerce,  Mr.  Swain  has  been  a  constant  participant 
for  many  years,  and  from  its  earliest  days  has  been  Vice 
President  or  a  Trustee  of  the  institution.  The  records 
are  replete  with  the  results  of  his  practical  suggestions 
on  commercial  subjects.  His  especial  pride  in  life  is  his 
mercantile  education.  At  the  opening  of  the  new  Mer- 
chants' Exchange  in  July,  1867,  being  introduced  in  his 
official  capacity  of  Superintendent  of  the  Mint,  he  said 
in  the  course  of  a  speech  of  considerable  length : 

But  I  am  not  overpleased,  Mr.  President,  with  the  association  into 
which  you  have  brought  me.  It  is  not  as  a  public  officer  that  I 
desire  to  be  known.  Creditable  as  it  may  appear  to  enjoy  the  con- 
fidence of  the  people  and  the  Government,  I  regard  the  vocation  of 
the  merchant  in  the  broadest  and  the  most  comprehensive  acceptation 
of  that  word  as  the  most  important  of  all.  In  the  one  case,  the 
accident  of  position  or  office  may  give  a  factitious  importance  to  the 
individual,  to  which  he  may  not  be  entitled.  But  in  the  case  of  the 
merchant,  his  influence,  his  power,  his  importance,  are  not  reflected, 
are  not  derived,  are  not  uncertain.     They  spring  out  of  the  depths 


ROBERT    B.    SWAIN.  623 

of  his  own  nature,  and  no  external  surroundings  can  raise  him  to  a 
place  higher  than  that  to  which  his  own  genius  may  lift  him.  I 
claim  to  rank  as  a  merchant;  as  a  merchant  I  believe  I  hold  a  public 
office.  I  dCtsire  no  prouder  honor  than  to  hold  humble  rank  with 
men  v/ho  have  so  distinguished  their  class.  I  regard  honorable 
distinction  as  a  merchant  as  infinitely  more  valuable  than  I  do  the 
highest  glory  that  can  come  from  any  office  in  the  gift  of  people  or 
President.  "Whose  name  stands  higher  in  the  catalogue  of  merchants, 
higher  in  the  roll  of  fame,  higher  in  the  annals  of  history;  than  that 
of  George  Peabody?  What  office  in  the  gift  of  Prince,  Potentate,  or 
President,  can  confer  such  distinction  as  has  been  earned  by  this 
simple,  unpretending  merchant  and  banker?  Indeed,  does  not  his 
name  shine  out  more  glowingly  than  that  of  any  Prince  or  President 
himself?  And  this,  not  because  he  has  become  possessed  of  huge 
wealth,  but  because  his  mind  has  been  disciplined  while  accumu- 
lating that  wealth,  to  a  correct  knowledge  of  the  uses  to  which  it 
should  be  applied,  v/hich  so  few  understand.  Such  men,  too,  were 
Robert  B.  Minturn,  Jonathan  Goodhue,  and  Peter  Cooper,  now 
living,  and  a  host  of  others. 

Mr.  Swain  not  only  possesses  the  faculty  of  express- 
ing himself  readily  and  neatly  on  public  occasions,  but 
he  is  also  peculiarly  happy  in  the  composition  of  ad- 
dresses, while  his  pen  has  frequently  been  engaged  in 
contributions  to  the  press,  both  by  editorials  and  com- 
munications, on  a  variety  of  subjects,  but  usually  in  the 
discussion  of  topics  of  pressing  public  interest.  His  style 
is  compact  and  logical,  and  when  occasion  seems  to  re- 
quire it,  men  and  measures  are  handled  with  a  force  and 
directness  that  leaves  nothing  to  be  inferred. 

In  retiring  from  the  responsibilities  and  cares  of 
office,  he  gladly  resumed  his  place  as  a  private  citizen, 
enabling  him  to  pursue  his  regular  mercantile  business, 
which,  however,  he  had  never  abandoned  during  his  super- 
intendency  of  the  Mint.  The  office  came  to  him  unsought, 
and  he  left  it  without  regret,  satisfied  to  know  that  the 
department  over  which  he  had  presided  for  so  many  years, 
continually  enjoyed  the  confidence  of  the  people  and  of 
the  Grovernment,  that  in  the  discharge  of  his  duty  he 
established  many  valuable  precedents  which  no  successor 
can  set  aside,  and  that  during  his  official  career  not  a 
word  was  whispered  even  among  his  political  enemies 
against  the  upright  management  of  an  institution  which 
sends  forth  two-thirds  of  the  coinage  of  the  country. 


624  REPRESENTATIVE   5IEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

Notwithstanding  that  he  has  figured  conspicuously  as  a 
man  of  affairs — as  a  public  man — those  who  know  him 
intimately  are  aware  that  he  does  not  court  prominence 
or  notoriety — has  no  ambition  to  be  a  leader.  If  he  has 
taken  a  leading  part  in  public  matters,  it  was  with  the 
consciousness  that  duty  demanded  the  consecration  of 
time  and  influence  to  useful  objects,  and  the  building  up 
of  a  purer  and  more  elevated  tone  of  society,  while  his 
own  impulses  leaned  to  the  studious  seclusion  of  his  lib- 
rary or  the  quiet  of  his  legitimate  calling.  Together 
with  a  strict  fidelity  to  every  engagement,  and  unclouded 
clearness  and  accuracy  in  business,  he  has  a  cheerful, 
elastic,  ingenuous  manner  that  invites  confidence,  and  is 
in  keeping  with  a  kindly,  sympathetic  nature.  Still  in 
the  prime  of  life,  Mr.  Swain  has  been  fortunate  in  retain- 
ing, through  many  years,  all  his  valuable  early  friendships, 
while  the  range  of  his  commercial  connections  has  widely 
extended  on  both  sides  of  the  continent. 


FREDERICK  F.  LOW. 

J3y  y/'lLLIAM  y.    )VeLLS. 


THE  appointment  of  Governor  Low  as  United  States 
Minister  to  China,  while  regarded  as  a  titting  recog- 
nition of  his  services  in  the  several  honorable  stations  he 
has  occupied  under  the  Federal  and  State  Governments, 
was  particularly  pleasing  to  Californians — not  only  his 
intimate  friends,  but  the  community  at  large.  The  in- 
creasing importance  of  California,  and  its  position  rela- 
tively to  China,  seem  especially  to  designate  that  State 
as  a  point  from  which  to  select  envoys  to  the  Asiatic 
countries  bordering  on  the  Pacific;  a  policy,  however, 
which  has  too  often  been  overlooked  by  administrations 
previous  to  that  of  President  Grant.  But  Mr.  Low,  al- 
though a  Calif ornian  proper,  made  so  by  twenty  years' 
residence  in  the  land  of  gold,  has  a  reputation  somewhat 
national  in  character,  having  filled  the  offices  of  Collector 
of  the  Port  of  San  Francisco  and  Member  of  Congress, 
both  during  periods  of  great  public  agitation,  and  when 
abilities  of  no  ordinary  kind  were  demanded;  and  the 
same  may  be  said  of  his  term  as  Governor  of  California. 
He  is  not  only  a  representative  Californian,  but  a  repre- 
sentative American,  and  is  endowed  with  those  qualities 
of  mind  which  eminently  fit  him  for  a  leading  foreign 
mission.  In  view  of  the  international  questions  incident 
to  our  proximity  to  the  vast  populations  across  the  Pacific, 
the  Chinese  Mission  rises  to  the  first  importance.  Our 
40 


G26  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

representative  to  that  ancient  Government  is  liable  to 
have  submitted  to  his  judgment,  subjects  involving  com- 
mercial and  maritime  issues  of  incalculable  weight.  A 
third  of  the  human  race  live  opposite  to  us;  and  these 
nervously  active  and  imitative  people  are  brought  by  the 
modern  appliances  of  steam  travel  nearer  to  the  factories 
of  the  North  and  the  cotton  fields  of  the  South  than 
England  was  forty  years  ago,  when  European  labor 
reached  America  by  sailing  craft,  sometimes  occupying 
six  weeks  in  crossing  the  Atlantic.  The  natural  anxiety 
which  all  feel  who  are  interested  in  our  relations  with 
China  was  relieved  u]3on  the  announcement  of  the  name 
of  the  new  Minister,  from  whose  good  sense,  tact,  and 
experience,  much  was  to  be  expected. 

Mr.  Low  was  born  in  1828,  in  the  State  of  Maine,, 
where  his  ancestors  were  among  the  earliest  settlers. 
After  completing  an  academical  education,  he  engaged  in 
mercantile  pursuits  in  Boston,  whence  he  came  to  Cali- 
fornia in  1849,  arriving  in  San  Francisco  in  the  height 
of  the  gold  excitement  on  the  first  trip  of  the  steamship 
Panama^  in  June  of  that  year.  Continuing  business  as 
a  merchant  in  San  Francisco  until  1854,  he  went  to 
Marysville  in  the  following  year,  where  he  established  a 
banking  house,  and  was  widely  known  as  a  prosperous 
banker.  In  1861,  he  was  elected  to  the  thirty-seventh 
Congress,  and  repairing  to  Washington  took  an  active 
part  in  the  vital  issues  then  convulsing  the  nation.  The 
civil  war  had  broken  out,  and  during  the  whole  of  his 
Congressional  term  every  hour  was  big  with  events  in 
which  the  national  existence  was  at  stake  between  con- 
tendmg  armies.  The  record  of  Mr.  Low  finds  him  ever 
prompt,  energetic,  and  uncompromising  in  his  devotion 
to  the  cause  of  the  Union.  The  limits  of  our  sketch  will 
not  admit  of  more  than  this  condensed  allusion  to  his 
course  at  that  time,  familiar  as  it  is  to  the  general  reader 
for  its  unshaken  patriotism.  In  counsel  with  statesmen 
of  veteran  experience,  his  clearness  of  discernment  and 
fertility  of  resource  were  ever  apparent  in  times  of  emer- 
gency. At  the  expiration  of  his  term  in  the  spring  of 
1863,  he  was  appointed  by  President  Lincoln  Collector 


FREDERICK   F.    LOW.  627 

of  the  Port  of  San  Francisco,  succeeding  Ira  P.  Rankin; 
and  here,  as  in  the  halls  of  Congress,  he  showed  an  apt- 
itude for  business,  and  a  quick  comprehension  of  intricate 
revenue  questions,  that  commanded  the  respect  of  the 
merchants  with  whom  he  came  in  contact.  Soon  after 
assuming  the  office  of  Collector,  he  was  elected  Governor 
of  California,  and  entered  upon  his  duties  in  December, 
1863,  serving  the  full  term  of  four  years,  when,  in  1867, 
he  returned  to  private  life. 

This,  in  brief,  is  the  public  career  of  Mr.  Low.  We 
believe  it  will  be  universally  conceded  that  w^e  have  in 
no  respect  overestimated  his  services  or  abilities.  During 
the  larger  portion  of  his  term  as  Governor  the  civil  war 
was  raging,  and  his  activity  in  holding  California  true  to 
the  Union  gave  great  satisfaction  to  the  Government  and 
to  the  people  of  this  coast.  He  devoted  himself  to  the 
finances  of  the  State,  and  by  his  prudence,  sagacity,  and 
business  intelligence,  cleared  off  the  floating  debt,  amount- 
ing to  something  like  $1,000,000,  and  placed  the  State 
Treasury  on  a  cash  basis.  His  administration  was  dis- 
tinguished for  unflinching  opposition  to  all  special  and 
local  bills,  and  a  determined  enmity  to  such  as  were  calcu- 
lated to  squander  the  funds  of  the  State  for  the  benefit 
of  individuals.  His  veto  of  several  bills  granting  aid  to 
railroads,  and  for  other  similar  schemes,  gave  him  the  un- 
limited confidence  of  the  people.  His  inaugural  and 
messages,  terse,  vigorous  and  practical,  were  generally  ad- 
mired as  lucid  expositions  of  the  state  of  public  affairs, 
for  the  clear  comprehension  of  which,  his  experience  as 
merchant,  banker,  and  legislator  had  given  him  peculiar 
advantages.  He  declined  a  renomination  in  1867,  which, 
in  the  language  of  one  of  the  leading  journals  of  Cali- 
fornia, was  the  mistake  of  his  life,  and  a  great  mistake  for 
his  party.  The  appointment  of  Minister  to  China  was 
tendered  to  him  by  President  Grant  without  solicitation, 
and  his  acceptance  of  that  important  and  delicate  mission 
was  more  in  deference  to  the  wishes  of  the  leading  busi- 
ness men  of  the  Pacific  coast  than  to  his  own  inclination. 
He  has  naturally  given  considerable  attention  to  the  various 
difficult  questions  accompanying  our  increased  intimacy 


628  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

with  China — perhaps  more  than  most  men  not  directly 
interested  in  them.  His  predecessors  to  China  during  the 
last  twenty-five  years  have  been  Caleb  Cushing,  Humphrey 
Marshall,  Mr.  Parker,  Robert  McLane,  William  B.  Reed, 
Anson  Burlingame,  and  J.  Ross  Browne.  Mr.  Low,  albeit 
he  has  done  his  State  service  in  various  responsible  posi- 
tions, is  still  a  young  man,  and  the  future  may  yet  be  bur- 
thened  with  his  honors.  'Next  to  his  clear-headed  insight 
into  involved  questions,  and  abilities  as  a  negotiator, 
perhaps  the  secret  of  his  remarkable  success  in  life  may 
be  found  in  his  amiability  and  urbanity,  which  are  appre- 
ciated by  a  wide  circle  of  friends,  and  which  draw  men 
towards  him  almost  without  an  effort  on  his  part. 

As  a  public  speaker,  he  exemplifies  the  unpretending 
directness  of  his  character,  seldom  aspiring  to  flights  of 
eloquence,  always  sensible  and  to  the  point,  ready  in 
language  and  appropriate  in  style.  At  the  dinner  given 
in  San  Francisco  to  commemorate  the  opening  of  the 
line  of  steamers  between  that  port  and  China,  in  January, 
1867,  Mr.  Low,  who  presided  on  the  occasion,  concluded 
as  follows  an  eloquent  speech  on  the  relations  of  the 
United  States  with  China: 

Until  within  a  few  years,  China  has  been  to  us  a  sealed  hook, 
practically,  and  even  now  we  are  permitted  to  examine  only  the  out- 
side and  the  title-page;  and  it  seems  but  yesterday  that  Commodore 
Perry  anchored  his  fleet  in  front  of  Japan,  and  gave  the  Tycoon  the 
option  of  opening  his  outside  door,  or  having  it  battered  down  with 
shells  made  of  American  iron.  Who  can  foretell  all  the  results  of 
intimate  commercial  relations  with  these  countries  during  the  next 
ten,  twenty,  or  fifty  years?  China,  with  an  area  of  5,000,000  square 
miles,  a  coast  line  of  3,350  miles,  and  containing  a  pox^ulation  of 
410,000,000  people,  or  about  one-third  of  the  whole  world,  thrown 
open  to  unrestricted  intercourse  with,  and  the  indomitable  energy 
of  the  American  people,  what  mutual  advantages  may  not  be  expected 
to  flow  from  it?  The  ruling  powers  in  China  will  learn  that  free 
intercourse  will  be  of  advantage  to  them;  that  they  can  increase  their 
imports  of  merchandise  with  profit,  and  dispense  with  the  large 
amounts  of  precious  metals  which  are  annually  received  in  payment 
of  exports,  and  hoarded.  And  while  the  Chinese  are  receiving  th-ese 
valuable  lessons,  may  not  our  magnates  in  finance  learn  that  the  true 
remedy  for  the  unsettled  state  of  our  financial  affairs  is  to  be  found 
in  securing  a  balance  of  foreign  trade  in  favor  of  the  United  States, 
rather  than  in  acts  of  Congress  making  the  selling  of  gold  a  mis- 
demeanor?   We  must  learn  to  treat  the  Chinese  who  come  to  live 


FREDERICK   F.    LOW.  629 

among  us  decently,  and  not  oppress  them  by  unfriendly  legislation, 
nor  allow  them  to  be  abused,  robbed,  and  murdered,  without  extend- 
ing to  them  any  adequate  remedy.  I  am  a  strong  believer  in  the 
strength  of  mind  and  muscle  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  race,  which  will 
win  in  the  contest  for  supremacy  with  any  people,  without  the  aid 
of  unequal  and  oppressive  laws;  and  the  man  who  is  afraid  to  take 
his  chances  on  equal  terms  with  his  opponents  is  a  coward,  and  un- 
worthy the  name  of  an  American.  Were  I  to  sum  up  the  whole 
duty  imposed  upon  us,  I  should  say  let  us  be  honest,  industrious, 
and  frugal;  be  persevering  and  progressive,  and  remember  Raleigh's 
maxim,  that,  "Whoever  commands  the  sea  commands  the  trade  of 
the  world;  and  whoever  commands  the  trade  of  the  world  commands 
the  riches  of  the  world,  and  consequently  the  world  itself.'' 


flTiri?;         -^Y 

iZlv  >J 


ANTONIO  MARIA  PICO.* 


THE  little  of  romance  that  attaches  to  the  name  of 
California  is  connected  with  the  days  prior  to 
American  intrusion,  when  the  scattered  missions  and 
presidios  held  the  aborigines  in  bodily  and  spiritual  thrall, 
and  a  few  descendants  of  the  heroes  of  the  Spanish  con- 
quest lorded  it  over  broad  leagues  of  territory,  and  main- 
tained an  estate  of  patriarchal  independence.  Afterwards 
came  the  coarse,  brutal  days  of  the  gold-digger ;  nor  have 
we  in  our  history  any  other  epoch  to  which  we  can  look 
back  with  something  of  that  romantic  feeling  which  clings 
around  the  older  days  of  chivalry  in  the  lives  of  older 
countries,  except  the  epoch  of  the  Spanish  rule.  One  of 
the  few  remaining  lives  which  connected  us,  as  by  a  pal- 
pable link,  with  the  past,  was  that  of  Antonio  Maria 
Pico.  Like  the  Castros,  Vallejos,  and  other  familiar 
Spanish  names,  that  of  Pico  is  united  with  the  early 
history  of  the  Californias.  Don  Antonio  Maria  was  born 
at  Monterey,  California,  in  1808,  when  our  own  nation  had 
barely  attained  its  majority,  while  our  revolutionary 
fathers  still  directed  the  career  of  the  Republic ;  when  the 
Regent  held  a  brilliant  court  at  St.  James',  and  nearly 
twenty  years  before  the  American  colonies  of  Spain  as- 
serted their  independence.  Then  the  Californias  were  to 
the  world  at  large  as  much  Urra  incognita  as  the  shores  of 
Tanganyika  are  to  us  to-day.  Their  very  name  savored 
of  the  age  of  fable.     It  seems  now  almost  wonderful  that 

**  For  explanatory  note,  see  Preface. 


632  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

the  changes  of  these  sixty  years — the  growth  of  one  great 
nation  from  feeble  infancy  to  vigorous  maturity,  the 
decadence  of  others,  the  overthrow  of  monarchies,  the  ex- 
tinction of  dynasties — should  have  transpired  within  the 
span  of  one  human  life ;  and  yet  they  were  all  crowded 
within  the  experience  and  ken  of  Sefior  Pico.  The  same 
thought  might  be  expressed  upon  the  death  of  any  man 
of  equal  age,  but  they  are  not  so  naturally  suggested  as 
in  the  case  of  this  old  Californian,  whose  own  youth 
reaching  back  to  the  romantic  period  of  our  history, 
naturally  connects  itself  with  the  contemporaneous  scenes 
which  have  been  enacting  in  the  world's  greater  drama. 

When  but  sixteen  years  of  age,  Pico  was  called  from 
his  home  at  Monterey  to  San  Juan  Capistrano,  by  Padre 
Ramon,  to  take  charge  of  the  books  and  business  of  that 
Mission.  He  afterwards  removed  to  San  Jose,  where  he 
held  for  many  years  the  office  of  Alcalde;  while  dis- 
charging the  duties  of  that  position,  he  induced  the 
people  of  San  Jose  to  commence  the  erection  of  the  old 
Mission  Church. 

He  was  residing  at  that  place,  and  in  the  prime  of  life, 
holding  office  under  the  Mexican  Government,  when  the 
Americans  under  Fremont  broke  over  the  mountains  and 
on  to  the  plains  of  California,  and  the  Federal  Navy  scoured 
the  coast  and  seized  the  ports  of  California.  Pico  was  a 
Colonel  in  the  Mexican  service,  but  was  unable,  with  the 
means  at  his  disposal,  and  the  equipments  at  his  command, 
to  successfully  oppose  the  progress  of  the  American  troops. 
The  Mexican  forces  retreated  towards  Los  Angeles,  and  soon 
afterwards  the  war  in  California  was  closed  by  capitulation 
and  a  surrender  to  the  United  States.  Col.  Pico  soon 
came  to  appreciate  the  heroic  qualities  of  the  American 
soldiers,  and  formed  that  strong  attachment  for  Gen. 
Fremont  which  he  ever  afterwards  manifested. 

Upon  the  calling  of  the  Convention  at  Monterey  to 
form  the  Constitution  of  California,  in  1849,  Col  Pico  was 
elected  a  delegate  from  Santa  Clara  county,  and  took  his 
seat  in  that  body,  and  was  a  useful  member  in  its  delibera- 
tions: was  appointed  Prefect  by  Gov.  Burnett,  and  in  1850 
was  elected  a  member  of  the  General  Assembly  from 


ANTONIO    MARIA   PICO.  633 

Santa  Clara  county.  In  1856,  upon  the  organization  of 
the  Republican  party,  and  the  nomination  of  Col.  Fremont 
for  the  Presidency,  Col.  Pico  united  with  that  party,  and 
did  much  to  secure  the  California  Spanish  vote  to  the 
support  of  the  Republican  ticket.  On  the  hrst  nomina- 
tion of  Mr.  Lincoln  for  the  Presidency,  the  California 
Republican  State  Convention  selected  Col.  Pico  as  one 
of  the  Republican  candidates  for  Presidential  Elector,  to 
which  office  he  was  chosen  by  the  people  at  the  sub- 
sequent election.  Mr.  Lincoln,  after  entering  upon  the 
duties  of  his  office,  appointed  Mr.  Pico  Receiver  of  publie 
moneys  at  the  land  office  in  Los  Angeles;  but  as  the 
duties  of  the  office  required  him  to  be  much  absent  from 
his  family,  he  soon  resigned  it. 

Col.  Pico  died  at  his  residence  at  San  Jose  on  Sunday 
morning.  May  23d,  1869.  Four  months  thereafter,  his 
mother  died  at  Castroville — having  attained  the  great  age 
of  ninety-eight  years.  The  old  lady  left  more  than  a 
hundred  descendants  and  probably  a  thousand  relatives  to 
mourn  her  death. 

Like  so  many  of  the  race  to  which  he  belonged,  Senor 
Pico  was  physically  an  extremely  handsome  man.  Of 
commanding  presence  and  courtly  address,  he  impressed 
the  stranger  as  one  of  the  finest  samples  of  that  noble 
Spanish  type  which  is  yearly  becoming  more  rare.  LTpon 
the  more  intimate  acquaintance  which  was  enjoyed  with 
his  generous  hospitalities,  one  was  impressed  by  the 
goodness  of  heart,  simplicity  of  character,  fine  sense  of 
honor,  and  that  sweetness  of  disposition  which  is  the  per- 
fection of  manliness,  rather  than  by  the  dignity  of  exterior 
which  first  commanded  attention.  These  very  virtues  and 
excellences  in  Sefior  Pico  contributed  to  cast  a  shadow 
over  the  closing  years  of  his  life.  In  the  early  American 
days,  by  abuse  of  his  confidence  and  betrayal  of  his 
trustfulness,  he  was  stripped  of  his  princely  possessions, 
and  was  subjected  thereafter  to  feel  the  mortifications  and 
bitterness  of  one  who  had  been  despoiled  through  the 
means  of  all  which  he  knew  to  be  best  and  noblest  in  his 
being.  He  held  aloof,  as  far  as  his  strong  human  feelings 
and  nature  would  permit,  from  Americans,  to  whom  his 


684  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

misfortunes  were  due,  never  learning  their  language  nor 
associating  upon  a  basis  of  intimacy  save  with  a  proved 
and  chosen  few.  Although  he  opposed  them  patriotically 
upon  their  invasion  of  his  country,  he  was  one  of  the  first 
of  prominent  and  influential  Californians  to  come  forward, 
upon  the  conclusion  of  the  treaty  of  Guadalupe  Hidalgo, 
to  accommodate  himself  and  those  of  his  countrymen  who 
looked  to  him  for  example  and  counsel,  to  the  new  order 
of  things.  It  is  believed  that  his  many  troubles  aggra- 
vated the  heart  disease  to  which  he  finally  succumbed. 
He  left  a  reputation  unsullied,  a  name  which  has  been 
honored  in  his  life,  a  wide  circle  of  deeply  attached 
friends,  nor — as  we  believe — -an  enemy  on  the  face  of  the 
.earth. 


WILLIAM  MORRIS  STEWART. 


MR.  Stewart  was  born  in  the  State  of  New  York,  in 
the  year  1827.  He  is  the  oldest  son  of  a  numerous 
family  of  brothers  and  sisters.  His  parents  are  native- 
born  Americans,  of  remote  English  or  Scotch  ancestry. 
During  the  War  of  1812,  his  father  enlisted  as  a  volun- 
teer from  the  State  of  New  York,  serving  during  a  por- 
tion of  the  war,  and  until  honorably  discharged.  He  is 
now  a  pensioner  of  the  government,  and  in  the  enjoy- 
ment of  faculties  still  unimpaired  by  the  ravages  of  time. 

In  early  youth,  Mr.  Stewart  worked  upon  his  father's 
farm,  his  ordinary  avocations  and  every-day  life  being 
little  different  from  that  of  other  boys  under  similar  cir- 
cumstances. An  ardent  desire  for  the  acquisition  of 
knowledge  was  one  of  his  leading  characteristics,  and  for 
the  accomplishment  of  this  end,  all  his  spare  time  was 
employed  in  the  study  of  such  books  as  could  be  pro- 
cured in  the  neighborhood  of  his  home. 

After  passing  through  the  usual  routine  of  work  and 
study,  (at  a  time  when  public  schools  were  neither  so 
numerous  or  so  thorough  as  now)  Mr.  Stewart,  by  com- 
bining his  own  earnings  with  judicious  pecuniary  assist- 
ance furnished  by  friends  who  took  an  interest  in  his 
progress,  was  enabled  to  enter  Yale  College  as  a  regular 
student.  At  this  seat  of  learning  he  remained  for  about 
three  years,  managing  in  that  time,  by  close  study,  to 
master  a  course  which  generally  occupied  a  longer  period. 
Mathematics  was  his  favorite  pursuit,  and  in  this  branch 
he  acquired  such  extraordinarv  -i-ofi-^/r^ncy  that  his  assist- 


636  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OP   THE   PACIPIC. 

ance  was  required  in  the  preparation  of  a  mathematical 
work  upon  which  one  of  the  professors  was  at  that  time 
employed.  His  Alma  Mater  afterwards  conferred  upon 
him  an  honorary  degree,  in  recognition  of  his  early  dili- 
gence and  subsequent  eminence. 

When  Mr.  Stewart  left  Yale  College,  the  excitement 
concerning  gold  discoveries  in  California  was  at  its  height, 
and  he  caught  the  contagion.  After  making  a  few  neces- 
sary preparations,  he  started  for  California  in  1849,  ar- 
riving at  San  Francisco  in  that  year,  in  time  to  take  an 
active  part  in  those  measures  which  prepared  the  way  for 
an  admission  to  the  Union.  Mining  was  then  the  occu- 
pation to  which  a  large  part  of  the  population  were  de- 
voted, and  in  a  short  time  Mr.  Stewart  found  himself  at 
work  in  the  mines.  He  followed  this  pursuit  for  some 
years.  Then,  having  determined  to  study  law,  he  made 
application  to  Hon.  John  R.  McConnell,  then  in  the  full 
tide  of  a  lucrative  practice  at  Nevada  City,  Cal.  The 
enthusiasm  and  zeal  of  the  young  man  was  a  sufficient 
earnest  of  that  unflinching  energy  and  close  application 
so  essential  to  the  successful  prosecution  of  legal  studies. 
His  personal  appearance  at  the  time  of  this  application 
was  anything  but  prepossessing:  he  was  attired  in  buck- 
skin pants,  heavy  boots,  slouch  hat,  and  such  other  gar- 
ments as  generally  completed  a  miner's  costume;  but  this 
rough  exterior  could  not  conceal  that  native  hue  of  reso- 
lution which  animated  his  whole  appearance.  Arrange- 
ments, satisfactory  both  to  pupil  and  preceptor,  were 
made,  and  preparations  for  the  bar  were  commenced  im- 
mediately. These  were  carried  on  with  characteristic 
perseverance  for  the  space  of  three  months,  at  the  end 
of  which  time  he  applied  for  admission,  was  subjected  to 
a  rigorous  and  searching  examination,  was  declared  to  be 
qualified,  and  a  license  to  practice  granted  forthwith. 
Shortly  after  becoming  a  full-fledged  attorney,  he  was 
elected  a  Justice  of  the  Peace,  and  discharged  the  duties 
of  the  office  without  ''  fear,  favor,  or  affection."  Though 
the  questions  that  came  before  this  petty  tribunal  were 
generally  unimportant,  they  were  always  decided  on 
principle;  and  the  correctness  of  these  decisions  is  evi- 


WILLIAM   MORRIS   STEWART.  637 

denced  from  the  fact  that  they  were  rarely  reversed  on 
appeal. 

After  serving  one  term  as  a  Justice,  the  ambition  for 
more  exalted  fields  of  labor,  together  with  an  aptitude 
for  business  w^iich  had  already  been  exhibited,  led  to 
the  formation  of  a  partnership  between  Mr.  kjtewart  and 
his  old  preceptor.  During  a  portion  of  the  time  which 
this  partnership  lasted,  Mr.  McConnell  held  the  office  of 
Attorney  General  of  the  State,  and  being  at  one  time 
compelled  to  be  absent,  he  selected  his  partner  to  fill  his 
place  until  his  return. 

For  the  successful  conduct  of  important  criminal 
cases  before  the  highest  judicial  tribunal  of  the  State, 
and  for  the  preparation  of  sound  legal  opinions  upon 
mooted  constitutional  questions,  no  mean  order  of  ability 
is  required.  It  is  therefore  no  small  tribute  to  say  that 
he  performed  his  duties  in  a  manner  such  as  to  meet 
with  the  universal  approval  of  the  people,  and  to  add  in- 
creased lustre  to  a  rapidly  advancing  reputation.  At 
about  this  time,  Mr.  Stewart  was  married  to  the  third 
daughter  of  Gov.  Henry  S.  Foote,  of  Mississippi,  and 
shortly  after  this  event  the  partnership  between  Mr. 
McConnell  and  himself  was  dissolved  by  regular  limita- 
tion of  time. 

Mr.  Stewart  then  commenced  to  practice  for  himself. 
That  there  is  always  room  at  the  top  of  the  ladder  of 
fame,  however  much  its  approaches  may  be  crowded^  was 
with  him  an  appreciated  maxim,  and  it  is  no  matter 
of  wonderment  that  we  see  him  disputing  the  place  for 
precedence  with  older  and  more  experienced  practition- 
ers. Force  of  will,  celerity  of  action,  indomitable  per- 
severance, strict  integrity,  and  a  restless  energy  that 
could  never  be  quieted,  are  qualities  which  Mr.  Stewart 
possessed,  and  it  was  these  attributes  which  enabled  him 
to  take  a  high  place  at  the  bar,  even  at  the  very  outset 
of  his  career — a  place  which  he  always  maintained,  never 
losing  an  inch  of  ground  once  gained,  but  steadily  push- 
ing forward  towards  the  very  front  ranks  of  the  profes- 
sion. At  this  time  business  was  becoming  somewhat 
stagnant  at  Nevada  City;  many  important  mining  suits 


638  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

had  been  settled ;  and  but  few  real  estate  cases  of  any 
magnitude  were  likely  to  arise  in  a  country  where  titles 
were  unclouded  and  local  resources  were  but  beginning 
to  be  developed.  Hence  a  better  location  was  to  be 
found,  and  Downieville,  Sierra  county,  was  the  chosen 
place.  A  removal  was  accordingly  efiected  in  the  year 
1857. 

Here,  among  comparative  strangers,  the  struggle  for 
professional  advancement  and  its  unfailing  emoluments 
was  renewed  with  unabated  vigor.  Immediate  employ- 
ment on  one  side  or  the  other  of  every  important  case, 
a  high  reputation  for  professional  skill,  and  a  leading 
position  at  what  was  then  a  very  able  bar,  are  indicative 
of  his  standing  at  this  time;  but  Downieville  soon  shared 
the  fate  of  other  mining  towns,  and  settled  down  from  a 
state  of  undue  excitement  to  a  condition  of  comparative 
quietude :  it  was  no  longer  the  place  for  an  active,  enter- 
prising, and  rising  young  man. 

Fortunately  at  this  juncture  (1859)  the  discovery  of 
extensive  silver  mines  at  Washoe  afforded  just  the  op- 
portunity for  a  man  of  Stewart's  composition  to  reap 
riches  and  renown  in  an  almost  incredibly  short  space  of 
time.  It  did  not  take  long  to  decide  so  vital  a  question, 
and  a  second  removal  was  effected  with  commendable 
promptitude.  This  move  was  made  just  in  time  to  meet 
the  flood  of  immigration  which  shortly  after  began  to 
flow  towards  the  region  hitherto  regarded  as  a  mere 
barren  waste,  but  now  believed  to  teem  with  exhaustless 
mineral  wealth.  From  the  confusion  which  ensued, 
sprung  endless  litigation.  Disputed  boundaries,  priority 
of  locations,  non-compliance  with  legal  forms,  the  mutual 
rights  of  holders  of  adjacent  claims — these  and  kindred 
questions  were  the  fruitful  parents  of  numberless  law- 
suits. This  was  just  the  location  for  a  man  possessed  of 
great  fertility  of  resources  and  willing  to  encounter  any 
obstacles,  which  were  generally  surmounted  by  the  per- 
tinacity with  which  they  were  met.  Here  was  a  battle- 
field where  new  and  untried  expedients  were  more  likely 
to  eventuate  in  success  than  a  strict  compliance  with 
long  established  precedents ;  where  celerity  of  movement 


WILLIAM   MORRIS   STEWART.  639 

was  of  more  effect  than  regular  approaches ;  where  ^^Tapo- 
leonic  genius  falsified  all  military  maxims.  There  were 
few  precedents  for  information  of  lawyers  or  the  guidance 
of  the  bench.  Some  of  the  questions  which  arose  were 
novel,  and  many  of  them  very  intricate.  Some  had  never 
before  arisen,  and  others  had  been  passed  over  without 
definite  decision.  There  was  no  reasoning  upon  such 
cases  from  analogy:  they  must  be  decided  each  upon  its 
own  individual  merits  and  the  circumstances  under  which 
it  arose.  Difference  of  situation  led  to  conflicting  de- 
cisions. From  chaos  must  be  educed  a  system  of  order; 
from  a  confused  mass  of  decisions,  evidence,  and  opinions, 
must  be  formed  a  steady  and  unvarying  rule  of  law. 

It  is  no  flattery  to  Mr.  Stewart,  still  less  is  it  an  in- 
justice to  his  compeers,  to  say  that  he  contributed  as 
much  towards  this  result — towards  forming  a  correct 
system  of  jurisprudence  for  the  State  of  Nevada — as  any 
one  lawyer  within  the  borders  of  the  State.  An  ex- 
tensive practice  necessarily  made  him  acquainted  with  all 
important  points  which  arose.  The  ''  one  ledge  theory," 
a  mixture  of  law  and  geology,  was  a  proposition  ad- 
vanced by  him,  and  demonstrated  in  many  instances. 

Mr.  Stewart  never  argued  a  case  without  preparation: 
by  conversing  with  witnesses,  and  a  careful  examination 
of  authorities,  he  made  himself  familiar  with  every  issue 
which  could  by  possibility  arise,  so  as  never  to  be  taken 
at  a  disadvantage.  An  anecdote  related  by  Dr.  Merritt 
of  Oakland,  in  Mr.  Stewart's  presence,  is  illustrative  of 
his  character.  The  Doctor  was  in  Virginia  City  attend- 
ing to  some  legal  matters,  and  was  recommended  to  con- 
sult with  Mr.  Stewart  before  commencing  suit.  The 
parties  were  introduced,  whereupon  Mr.  Stewart  said, 
''Well,  Doctor,  state  your  case."  The  Doctor  then  com- 
menced, but  had  not  proceeded  far  when  he  was  inter- 
rupted with  the  inquiry,  ^'  Have  you  a  witness  to  prove 
that  fact  ?"  An  affirmative  answer,  and  the  Doctor  went 
on  with  the  statement,  but  was  frequently  interrupted 
during  the  course  of  his  narrative  with  the  same  inter- 
rogatory. At  length  the  conclusion  was  approaching, 
when  Dr.  Merritt  stated  a  fact  upon  the  proof  of  which 


640  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

the  whole  case  hinged,  when  Stewart  again  asked,  "Have 
you  a  witness  to  prove  that  fact?"  "No."  ^^  Then  you 
must  go  right  out  and  get  one!'  This  anecdote,  although 
probably  overdrawn  as  to  the  mendacity  of  witnesses  or 
the  readiness  of  lawyers  to  use  perjured  testimony,  is  yet 
strikingly  illustrative  of  tha-^etermination  never  to  go 
to  trial  \vith  the  risk  of  a  surprise,  and  consequent  dis- 
comfiture. 

When  a  case  was  ready  for  court  it  was  conducted 
towards  its  conclusion  with  the  same  assiduous  zeal  which 
marked  its  preparation.  Truth  w^as  drawn  from  the  lips 
of  an  unwilling  or  an  interested  witness,  more  by  force 
of  will  and  an  accurate  knowledge  of  human  nature,  than 
by  subtle  rules  of  logic  or  a  confusing  mode  of  examina- 
tion. 

As  a  forensic  speaker,  Mr.  Stewart  is  a  man  of  marked 
ability.  He  argues  a  case  closely,  never  leaving  the  main 
point  for  the  sake  of  saying  a  fine  thing.  His  speeches, 
considered  merely  as  compositions,  are  not  calculated  to 
impress  one  with  the  ability  of  the  speaker.  They  are 
clear,  methodical,  almost  entirely  devoid  of  ornament, 
especially  that  of  a  meretricious  character,  but  yet  they 
are  forcible  and  convincing,  addressed  to  the  understand- 
ing rather  than  to  the  imagination  of  his  auditors.  When 
occasion  requires  a  display  of  rhetorical  skill  or  oratorical 
powers,  his  speeches  differ  from  a  mere  juridical  argument. 
In  summing  up  his  character  as  a  lawyer,  we  may  truthfully 
say  that  he  is  an  eminent  one,  especially  in  that  depart- 
ment— mininsr  law — to  which  his  attention  has  been  most 
closely  directed. 

At  this  period  of  his  life  (1860,  '61,  '62)  he  was 
eminently  successful.  Business  poured  in  upon  him 
to  such  an  extent  that  he  was  frequently  compelled 
to  refuse  important  suits.  Up  to  this  time,  he  had 
taken  but  little  part  in  politics,  preferring  the  pursuit  of 
a  practice  which  yielded  an  enormous  revenue,  and  a 
plenitude  of  renown.  But  a  lawyer  in  esse  is  a  politician 
in  posse;  good  lawyers  generally  expect  to  go  to  Congress ; 
Stewart  was  no  exception  to  the  rule ;  yet  his  transposition 
from  the  bar  to  the  Senate  chamber  was  due  as  much  to 


WILLIAM   MORRIS   STEWART.  641 

the  desire  of  the  people  to  employ  trained  ability,  as  to 
his  own  ambition  for  political  preferment. 

For  the  reasons  before  enumerated,  he  was  elected  one 
of  the  Senators  from  J^evada,  at  the  first  meeting  of  the 
Legislature  for  the  ratification  of  the  constitution,  a  posi- 
tion to  which  he  was  reelected  in  1869.  That  energy 
and  activity  which  wins  for  its  possessor  a  place  in  the 
front  rank  of  advocates  in  a  mining  State,  is  duly  ap- 
preciated in  Congress,  where  industry  is  a  commodity 
valued  in  proportion  to  its  scarcity. 

Prior  to  the  war,  and  indeed  ever  since  ^Ir.  Stewart 
attained  his  majority,  he  had  been  a  Democrat,  in  full 
affiliation  with  the  leaders  of  the  party,  and  an  earnest 
advocate  of  its  leading  doctrines.  He  voted  for  Breckin- 
ridge in  1860. 

After  Mr.  Lincoln's  election,  when  all  chances  for  a 
peaceful  settlement  had  vanished,  and  an  adjustment  of 
sectional  differences  could  only  be  effected  through  the 
arbitrament  of  the  sword,  Mr.  Stewart  unhesitatingly 
severed  his  connection  with  his  old  political  associates, 
and  allied  his  fortunes  wdth  those  who  were  for  a  vigor- 
ous prosecution  of  the  war.  Nevada  was  admitted  to 
the  Union  during  the  days  when  the  storm  of  war  raged 
fiercest;  when  the  cries  of  those  who  sought  for  peace 
were  drowned  in  the  general  uproar  for  war,  and  it  is  not 
strange,  therefore,  that  she  sent  men  whose  "voices  were 
for  war"  to  represent  her  in  the  national  councils.  Gov. 
Nye  and  Mr.  Stewart,  both  uncompromising  LTnion  men, 
were  elected  at  the  first  meeting,  and  were  both  retained 
for  a  second  term  of  office. 

Since  Senator  Stewart's  entrance  into  political  life,  his 
course  is  known  to  the  whole  country.  Before  the  con- 
clusion of  the  war,  there  was  but  little  opportunity  for 
a  new-comer  to  display  his  abilities,  as  the  plan  of  offensive 
operations  had  been  determined  upon,  and  was  undeviat- 
ingly  pursued.  With  the  close  of  the  contest,  affairs  were 
changed,  and  an  opportunity  for  distinction  was  open,  such 
as  is  seldom  offered.  A  new  system  of  tactics  w^as  to  be 
followed;  the  relations  of  the  States  had  been  suspended, 
but  not  entirely  dissolved ;  to  heal  animosities  engendered 
41 


642  EEPRESENTATIVE    MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

by  a  long  and  bloody  war;  to  reestablish  the  authority 
of  the  general  government,  without  unnecessary  harshness 
to  the  Southern  States;  to  restore  harmony  and  good 
feeling  between  the  two  sections  by  the  enactment  of 
enlightened  laws ;  to  fix  the  political  status  of  the  emanci- 
pated negroes;  to  temper  justice  with  mercy,  and  angry 
passions  with  a  leaven  of  magnanimity,  required  qualities 
which  go  far  towards  forming  high-minded  statesmanship. 
At  this  conjuncture,  Senator  Stewart  offered  his  "  Uni- 
versal Amnesty  and  Universal  Suffrage"  resolutions,  which 
he  vigorously  supported  with  his  voice  and  vote.  There 
can  be  little  question  but  that  if  those  resolutions  had 
been  adopted  the  vexed  question  would  have  been  speedily 
and  definitely  settled.  The  fate  of  these  resolutions  is 
too  well  known  to  require  comment.  At  this  period, 
Senator  Stewart  maintained  close  personal  relations  with 
President  Johnson,  and  gave  an  undivided  support  to  the 
leading  measures  of  his  administration.  Unfortunately 
for  the  whole  country,  a  humane  and  magnanimous  policy 
did  not  prevail,  and  harsher  measures  were  decided  upon. 
Senator  Stewart  was  elected  as  a  Republican  at  a  time 
when  sectional  hostility  was  at  its  height;  but  since  his 
entrance  into  the  halls  of  Congress,  had  not  advocated 
extreme  measures,  and  hence  could  not  in  strictness  be 
termed  a  ^^  Radical."  But  party  lines  were  closely  drawn, 
and  a  choice  must  be  made.  Senator  Stewart  readily 
gave  his  adherence  to  measures  introduced  by  Repub- 
licans, though  they  were  somewhat  in  conflict  with  former 
expressed  opinions.  This  partial  change  of  opinion  arose 
from  two  causes:  a  conviction  of  previous  error,  and  a 
belief  that  more  extreme  measures  were  necessary  for 
the  salutary  treatment  of  the  reconstruction  question. 
He  has  since  given  his  undivided  support  to  those 
Congressional  enactments  known  as  the  ^^  Reconstruction 
Acts,"  commencing  with  the  ''  Civil  Rights  Bill,"  and 
ending,  for  the  present,  with  the  ''  Fifteenth  Amendment." 
Of  this  latter  document,  upon  which  has  been  exhausted 
the  language  of  panegyric  or  invective,  according  to  the 
political  tenets  of  the  commentators,  Senator  Stewart 
is,  we  believe,  the  author;  and  however  much  it  may  be 


WILLIAM   MORRIS   STEWART.  643 

decried  as  a  public  measure,  no  one  can  fail  to  admire 
the  simplicity  of  a  document  which  accomplishes,  within 
the  compass  of  two  lines,  a  purpose  which  has  been  ad- 
vocated by  able  partizans  ever  since  the  formation  of  the 
government.  It  is  the  concentrated  essence  of  the  doc- 
trines of  the  original  abolitionists  and  emancipationists. 

Mr.  Stewart,  though  before  known  as  a  moderate  Ee- 
publican,  was  an  advocate  of  the  impeachment  of  President 
Johnson,  and  worked  and  voted  with  the  thirty-five  senators 
who  declared  the  President  guilty  as  charged.  He  was 
never  classed  as  one  of  those  whose  vote  was  in  the  least 
degree  doubtful.  He  possessed  the  confidence  of  his  as- 
sociates, as  is  evidenced  from  the  fact  of  his  appointment 
upon  the  ''Judiciary"  and  other  important  Congressional 
committees. 

But  whilst  devoting  so  much  time  to  national  affairs, 
he  has  not  neglected  matters  of  moment  to  the  people 
of  this  coast.  The  Pacific  railroad  has  at  all  times  re- 
ceived a  large  share  of  his  attention,  and  he  has  con- 
tributed every  thing  in  his  power  to  the  completion  of 
an  enterprise  of  so  much  importance  to  the  people  of  this 
section  of  the  Union.  Other  lines  of  railroad  have  also 
derived  benefit  from  his  efforts,  for  it  is  but  recently  that 
he  has  contributed  a  large  share  of  his  time  towards  the 
completion  of  a  plan  for  a  railroad  through  the  San 
Joaquin  Valley. 

Every  measure  having  for  its  object  the  development 
of  the  mining  regions,  lessening  the  hardship  of  the  in- 
habitants, or  contributing  to  their  greater  security  and 
comfort,  has  met  with  his  hearty  support.  The  establish- 
ment of  complete  postal  facilities,  those  great  civilizers, 
has  been  an  object  of  especial  care.  He  was  an  early  and 
earnest  advocate  of  Chinese  immigration. 

In  Congress,  Mr.  Stewart  is  looked  upon  as  an  able 
and  efiicient  member.  His  speeches  are  marked  more  by 
force  than  fire:  like  his  forensic  efforts,  they  are  almost 
entirely  devoid  of  ornament,  reaching  conclusions  less 
by  artificial  refinements  of  logic,  than  concise  arrange- 
ment, and  simple  brevity  of  statement. 

In  personal  appearance,  Senator  Stewart  is  rather  a 


644  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

striking  looking  personage :  he  is  considerably  over  six 
feet  in  height,  and  rather  stout,  without  being  inclined 
to  corpulency.  He  has  light  hair,  a  clear,  blue  eye,  and 
a  long,  flowing  beard.  He  is  just  approaching  middle 
age,  and  in  the  full  enjoyment  of  a  vigorous  manhood. 
Socially,  Mr.  Stewart  is  pleasant  and  affable,  without  be- 
ing familiar;  dresses  plainly,  without  ostentation  or  show, 
holding  himself  aloof  from  no  one,  however  humble  his 
condition  may  be.  He  has  implicit  confidence  in  those 
by  whom  he  is  surrounded,  and  this  trait  has  more  than 
once  been  the  cause  of  unfriendly  impositions. 

Taking  success  as  a  criterion  of  merit — a  generally 
accepted  rule — we  can  safely  pronounce  Senator  Stewart 
a  great  man.  The  writer  of  this  hasty  sketch  is  aware 
of  the  fact  that  there  is  but  a  slight  line  of  demarcation 
between  the  office  of  a  truthful  biographer  and  that  of  a 
mere  servile  adulator.  Looking  from  the  standpoint 
of  justice,  however,  and  free  from  political  or  personal 
bias,  he  has  endeavored  to  do  simple  justice  to  a  person- 
age with  whose  public  acts  the  people  are  already 
familiar. 


HUGH  P.   GALLAGHER 

pr  p.   f  .   p. 


REV.  Hugh  P.  Gallagher  was  born  in  the  County  Don- 
egal, Ireland,  in  the  year  1815.  From  his  tender 
years  he  manifested  a  desire  to  devote  his  life  and  ener- 
gies to  the  sacred  ministry.  He  was  distinguished  for 
his  assiduity  and  rapid  advancement  in  English  and 
classical  learning.  When  quite  young  he  left  his  pater- 
nal home  with  letters  dimissory  from  his  bishop,  to  seek 
a  new  and  wider  field  in  which  to  labor  in  the  cause  of 
religion.  He  landed  in  America  in  1837,  and  immediate- 
ly entered  the  Theological  Seminary  of  St.  Charles  Bor- 
romeo,  in  Philadelphia.  Shortly  afterwards,  he  w^as  ap- 
pointed Professor  of  the  Latin  and  Greek  languages  in 
that  Seminary. 

Whilst  prosecuting  his  ecclesiastical  studies  in  that 
institution,  he  possessed  advantages  of  which  he  did  not 
fail  to  profit.  At  that  time.  Most  Rev.  F.  P.  Kenrick, 
the  late  Archbishop  of  Baltimore,  whose  literary  fame  is 
not  limited  by  the  boundaries  of  our  Continent,  but  holds 
high  place  in  every  kingdom  of  Europe,  was  President 
of  the  Seminary.  His  brother,  the  Most  Rev.  Peter  R. 
Kenrick,  the  present  venerable  and  learned  Archbishop 
of  St.  Louis,  was  Rector  of  the  Seminary.  Rt.  Rev.  E. 
Barron,  afterwards  Bishop  of  Liberia,  in  Africa,  was  Pro- 
fessor of  Moral  Theology,  and  Rt.  Rev.  M.  O'Connor, 
the  first  Bishop  of  Pittsburg,  Professor  of  Dogmatic  The- 
ology. These  illustrious  men,  by  their  writings  and  mis- 
sionary labors,  have  done  much  to  place  the  Catholic 
Church,  in  the  United  States,  in  its  present  elevated  and 


646  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

dignified  position.  Under  the  instruction  and  influence 
of  such  tutors,  did  our  young  Levite  live  and  learn,  dur- 
ing his  whole  collegiate  career,  until  he  was  elevated  to 
the  priesthood  in  1840. 

From  ihis  date,  Father  Gallagher,  as  we  shall  now 
call  him,  entered  upon  the  duties  of  a  Catholic  Pastor. 
He  was  appointed,  for  his  first  Mission,  to  the  parish  of 
Pottsville,  at  that  time  one  of  the  largest  and  most  im- 
portant congregations  in  the  interior  of  Pennsylvania. 
Here  was  a  field  wherein  to  exercise  his  zeal.  This  was 
the  centre  of  the  great  coal  district  of  Eastern  Pennsyl- 
vania. Thousands  and  tens  of  thousands  of  operatives 
had  gathered  there  from  every  quarter  of  the  globe. 
Many  of  them  were  addicted  to  the  frightful  vice  of  in- 
temperance, the  prolific  source  of  broils,  fights,  bloodshed 
and  murder. 

Father  Gallagher's  compassionate  heart  was  moved  by 
the  misery  and  scandal  produced  by  these  excesses,  and  he 
resolved  to  use  his  utmost  efforts  to  stem  this  tide  of 
vice  and  immorality,  which  threatened  to  sweep  over 
the  land,  bringing  ruin  and  desolation  in  its  course. 
With  the  skill  and  prudence  of  a  more  matured  experi- 
ence, he  commenced  a  course  of  instructions  on  the  vir- 
tue of  temperance.  He  spoke  with  such  paternal  affec- 
tion and  pleaded  with  such  pathetic  earnestness,  that 
more  than  five  thousand  hardy  miners  came  forward  and 
pledged  themselves  to  total  abstinence  from  all  intoxi- 
cating drinks.  The  improved  condition  and  regularity 
of  conduct  of  these  teetotalers  had  a  happy  influence  in 
winning  over  many  of  the  votaries  of  inebriety  to  enlist 
under  the  temperance  banner. 

In  the  following  year.  Father  Gallagher  was  appointed 
to  govern  a  parish  in  western  Pennsylvania.  Here  also 
his  efforts  in  the  cause  of  temperance  were  crowned  with 
success.  His  labors  were  of  the  most  trying  character, 
as  he  was  obliged  to  travel  over  a  great  extent  of  country 
to  visit  the  different  congregations  entrusted  to  his  pas- 
toral charge.  One  of  a  less  robust  constitution  would 
have  succumbed  under  the  incessant  calls  made  on  his 
time,  both  by  day  and  night.     All  Catholics,  who  are  sick 


HUGH   P.    GALLAGHER.  647 

and  dying/ have  a  right  to  the  services  of  the  priest  at 
whatever  hour  he  may  be  called.  It  was  not  an  unfre- 
quent  occurrence  with  Father  Gallagher,  after  being  worn 
down  and  exhausted  with  the  arduous  labors  of  Sunday, 
celebrating  the  late  Mass,  preaching,  teaching  the  cate- 
chism, singing  vespers,  instructing  the  young  and  ignor- 
ant, and  in  various  other  duties,  to  be  called  out  in  a 
23itiless  storm,  to  visit  a  dying  person  some  fifteen  or 
twenty  miles  distant,  and  to  make  this  journey  not  un- 
frequently  on  a  trackless  road  over  snow-clad  hills. 

In  1844.  Father  Gallagher  was  called  by  his  ecclesi- 
astical superior  to  Pittsburg,  to  take  charge  of  the  The- 
ological Seminary.  His  duties  here  were  of  no  ordinary 
kind,  for  he  was  not  only  the  President  of  the  Institution, 
charged  with  its  management  and  discipline,  but  occupied 
different  chairs  of  instruction,  and  at  the  same  time  had 
care  of  a  large  parish.  About  this  time,  a  concerted  op- 
position to  the  Catholic  Church  and  to  the  rights  of  Cathol- 
ics, citizens  of  the  United  States,  was  organized  under 
the  name  of  the  Native  American  Party.  The  Churh,  her 
institutions  and  her  teachings,  were  maliciously  misre- 
presented, and  Catholics  were  held  up  to  the  scorn  and 
contempt  of  their  fellow-citizens  throughout  the  land. 
The  press  and  the  pulpit  were  equally  fierce  and  imjust 
in  their  attacks  on  Catholics.  Pittsburg  was  without  a 
newspaper  to  defend  the  rights  of  Catholics,  or  to  give  an 
honest  and  fair  statement  of  the  doctrines  and  discipline 
of  the  Church. 

Under  these  circumstances.  Father  Gallagher  was 
waited  on  by  many  prominent  citizens,  who  earnestly  so- 
licited him  to  cooperate  with  them  in  establishing  a  pa- 
per devoted  to  the  exposition  of  the  real  doctrines  of  the 
Catholic  Church,  and  to  its  vindication  from  the  multi- 
plied slanders  and  calumnies  of  a  misguided  press. .  The 
financial  part  of  the  undertaking  they  promised  to  attend 
to,  provided  Father  Gallagher  would  undertake  the  edi- 
torial department.  Weighed  down,  as  he  was,  by  his  nu- 
merous occupations,  he  might  well  have  refused  this  new 
burden ;  but  not  so  :  the  interests  of  the  Church,  of  his 
fellow- Catholics,  and  the  enlightenment  of  his  fellow-cit- 


648  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

izens  generally,  demanded  his  aid,  and  he  would  not,  even 
if  he  could,  resist  their  imperative  appeal.  The  Pittsburg 
Catholic  was  then  established,  and,  under  the  editorial 
management  of  Father  Gallagher,  attained  an  enviable 
reputation.  Its  influence  was  soon  felt.  The  fires  of  re- 
ligious intolerance  were  subdued,  the  voice  of  calumny 
silenced,  the  bitterness  of  fanaticism  mitigated,  and  men 
blushed  for  the  ignorance  by  which  they  were  impelled 
to  acts  of  violence  and  injustice.  Peace  and  good  will 
succeeded  to  strife  and  hatred.  These  happy  results 
were  due,  in  a  great  measure,  to  the  course  which  Father 
Gallagher  adopted.  The  editorials  of  the  "  Catholic''  were 
plain,  clear,  outspoken  expositions  of  doctrine,  whilst  the 
answers  to  assailants  were  the  embodiment  of  Christian 
charity,  pitying  rather  than  censuring,  the  deluded  spirit 
which  aniiliated  them.  The  demon  of  discord  and  re- 
ligious animosity  disappeared,  we  hope  never  again  to 
visit  our  land,  fanning  the  flames  of  burning  churches, 
asylums,  or  convents. 

This  great  task  being  accomplished,  Father  Gallagher 
was  called  on  by  his  bishop  to  complete  the  work  com- 
menced by  the  Reverend  and  illustrious  Prince  Gallitzen, 
in  Loretto.  Prince  Gallitzen  belonged  to  the  noble  house 
of  Gallitzen,  in  Russia.  Honors,  position  and  fame 
awaited  him,  had  he  remained  in  the  Greek  Church;  but 
this  his  conscience  forbade  :  for  after  examining  all  the 
arguments,  pro  and  cow,  and  devoutly  and  perseveringly 
imploring  the  assistance  of  Divine  light,  he  was  convinced 
that  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  was  the  only  Church 
which  had  claims  to  Divine  origin.  He,  therefore,  re- 
nounced honors,  country  and  home,  to  become  an  hum- 
ble missionary  in  the  then  wilds  of  Pennsylvania.  His 
work  was  blessed  by  Almighty  God.  A  flourishing  con- 
gregation grew  up  under  his  pastoral  care.  To  succeed 
such  a  devoted  missionary  and  carry  on  his  great  under- 
taking, was  Father  Gallagher  now  called.  He  set  to  work 
with  an  indomitable  spirit,  that  neither  knew  nor  courted 
repose. 

The  mantle  of  the  illustrious  Gallitzen  had  fallen  on 
a  worthy  successor.     The  work  of  his  ministry  was  bless- 


HUGH   P.    GALLAGHEE.  649 

edj  and  diffused  blessings.  As  the  congregation  was 
growing  large  and  important,  it  became  necessary  to  es- 
tablish schools.  To  this  end,  Father  Gallagher  purchased 
an  extensive  tract  of  land,  and  erected  thereon  a  commo- 
dious building  for  a  boarding  and  day  school.  He  invit- 
ed the  Sisters  of  Mercy  to  take  charge  of  it,  which  invita- 
tion they  accepted  ;  and  in  a  very  brief  period,  he  had  the 
satisfaction  of  witnessing  St.  Aloysius'  Academy  for  young 
ladies  in  full  operation,  crowded  with  boarders  and  day 
scholars,  diffusing  the  blessings  of  a  sound  moral  and  re- 
ligious education. 

The  male  children  were  now  to  be  provided  for.  The 
energies  of  Father  Gallagher  were  again  taxed  to  supply 
this  desideratum.  For  this  purpose  he  devoted  a  large 
farm  belonging  to  the  church,  and  had  the  necessary 
buildings  erected.  This  for  him  was  an  easy  task;  but 
how  was  he  to  procure  teachers?  A  merciful  Providence, 
which  seemed  to  guide  and  bless  all  his  undertakings, 
came  to  his  relief.  A  community  of  Franciscan  Brothers 
in  Ireland  had  determined  to  found  a  home  of  their  Or- 
der in  the  United  States.  This  coming  to  the  knowledge 
of  Father  Gallagher,  he  immediately  invited  them  to  Lor- 
etto ;  whither  they  came  and  opened  the  St.  Francis'  Col- 
lege. This  school  now  ranks  among  the  foremost  of 
educational  establishments  in  the  East.  The  Legislature 
of  Pennsylvania  chartered  it,  conferring  on  it  University 
privileges.  Its  graduates  now  shine  bright  among  the 
literati  of  the  Atlantic  States.  These  two  institutions  are 
proud  monuments  of  the  zeal  of  Father  Gallagher  in  the 
cause  of  education.  The  labors  of  our  good  Father  in 
this  portion  of  the  Lord's  vineyard  culminated  in  the 
erection  of  a  magnificent  church,  whose  massive  walls  and 
lofty  spires  will  proclaim  "His  praise  from  generation  to  , 
generation." 

In  1850,  the  Rev.  Father,  with  that  indefatigable  zeaL, 
which  characterized  him,  started  a  Catholic  newspaper 
at  Summitville,  Cambria  County,  Pennsylvania,  called  the 
Crusad.r,  aided  in  its  editorial  managemx^nt  by  the  late^ 
Rev.  Thos.  McCullough,  and  the  Right  Rev.  Dr.  Mullen,, 
present  bishop  of  Erie.     As  the  name  imports,  these  gifted 


650  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OP   THE   PACIFIC. 

divines  did  good  service  as  soldiers  of  the  cross ;  and  the 
various  articles  from  their  pens  were  written  with  such 
eloquence,  boldness  and  force,  as  to  challenge  the  ad- 
miration even  of  the  enemies  of  the  Catholic  faith.  Any 
one  on  this  or  the  other  side  of  the  Rocky  mountains^ 
who  perused  them,  will  bear  testimony  to  the  fact,  that 
they  have  not  been  surpassed,  if  equalled,  in  any  Cath- 
olic publication  of  our  day. 

In  the  year  1852,  he  was  appointed  Theologian  to  the 
First  Grand  Plenary  Council  of  bishops,  held  in  the  City 
of  Baltimore.  Our  own  venerable  and  learned  archbishop, 
Alemany,  who  was  in  attendance  at  the  Council  as  bishop 
of  Monterey,  was  most  solicitous  to  obtain  the  services 
of  a  pious,  learned  and  zealous  priest  to  aid  him  in  estab- 
lishing the  Church  on  a  solid  basis  on  these  shores^ 
whither  were  coming  people  of  every  clime,  attracted  by 
the  golden  yield  of  river  beds  and  mountain  sides.  Our 
illustrious  prelate's  keen  perception  was  not  slow  to 
single  out  Rev.  Father  Gallagher  from  among  the  many 
holy  and  devoted  priests  invited  to  the  Council.  He  earn- 
estly besought  the  Reverend  Father  to  join  him,  placing 
before  him  the  gi»eat  w^ants  of  his  diocese,  the  immense 
field  of  labor  in  it,  and  the  incalculable  good  to  be  accom- 
plished. These  arguments  had  their  weight;  but  how 
could  he  leave  a  parish  where  so  much  Jiad  been  done, 
and  yet  much  more  was  to  be  accomplished  ;  where  he  was 
beloved  and  revered  with  filial  affection?  Rt.  Rev.  Dr. 
•O'Connor  had  already  yielded  an  unwilling  consent  to  the 
';solicitations  of  Bishop  Alemany  for  a  temporary  absence 
i*of  Father  Gallagher,  who,  ever  willing  to  make  any  and 
every  sacrifice  where  the  glory  of  his  heavenly  Master 
-wsiB  to  be  extended,  and  the  welfare  of  his  neighbor  to  be 
promoted,  consented  to  the  importunities  of  the  Arch- 
bishop, and  immediately  made  preparations  to  set  out 
to  his  distant  and  laborious  mission.  The  prayers  of 
tlkousands,  for  whose  spiritual  benefit  he  had  so  success- 
folly  toiled,  like  the  odor  of  sweet  incense  ascended  to 
ihe  throne  of  grace,  entreating,  imploring  new  benedic- 
i?i:oiis  on  the  work  of  the  devoted  pastor.  The  lisping 
riSW?pplication  of  innocent  childhood  joined  with  the  trem- 


HUGH    P.    GALLAGHER.  651 

ulous  petition  of  old  age,  and  the  earnest  prayers  of  strong 
manhood,  besought  the  Giver  of  every  good  gift  to  bless 
and  protect  their  zealous  and  self-sacrificing  pastor.  The 
efficacy  of  such  intercession  was  made  manifest  by  the  sub- 
sequent career  of  Father  Gallagher.  It  seems  a  work  of 
supererogation  to  speak  to  Californians  of  his  life,  his 
labors  and  success;  thousands  are  willing  witnesses  of 
all  that  we  may  assert. 

Immediately  after  his  arrival  in  this  State,  in  the  fall 
of  1852,  he  proceeded  to  Benicia,  where,  as  yet,  there 
was  no  Catholic  Church.  He  took  instant  measures  to 
j3rocure  a  lot.  He  was  fortunate  in  obtaining  the  site  on 
which  the  present  church  stands.  The  lot  being  secured, 
it  became  necessary  to  open  a  subscription  for  the  erec- 
tion of  a  church.  The  Church  of  Benicia  was  the  first  fruit 
of  the  labors  of  Father  Gallagher,  in  California.  Subse- 
quently, he  visited  Shasta  and  Weaverville,  in  both  of 
which  towns  he  obtained  lots  on  which  to  erect  churches ; 
he  also  started  collections  for  building  them.  About  this 
time,  he  was  appointed  to  the  charge  of  St.  Francis' 
Church,  in  San  Francisco.  As  the  Catholic  population 
of  the  city  was  rapidly  increasing,,  there  was  not  sufficient 
church  accommodation  to  supply  its  requirements,  and 
Father  Gallagher  made  considerable  additions  and  im- 
provements in  St.  Francis'  Church.  Archbishop  Alemany 
now  resolved  to  build  the  cathedral  of  St.  Mary,  a  deter- 
mination with  whom  was  equivalent  to  its  realization.  He 
called  on  Father  Gallagher  to  assist  him  in  this  gigantic 
undertaking.  How  could  he  fail,  thus  aided  ?  The  work 
was  commenced  and  carried  on  until  St.  Mary's  Cathedral 
now  stands  a  stately  monument  of  the  noble  generosity  of 
the  citizens  of  San  Francisco,  and  an  imperishable  testi- 
mony of  the  zeal  and  energy  of  the  good  Archbishop  and 
Father  Gallagher. 

Whilst  engaged  in  carrying  on  the  cathedral,  our  Rev- 
erend Father  found  time  to  visit  other  portions  of  the 
diocese,  and  exert  his  influence.  Thus  he  secured  in  the 
beautiful  city  of  Oakland,  by  his  personal  influence,  the 
large  block  on  which  the  Catholic  Church  now  stands. 
With  his  usual  zeal  he  opened  a  subscription  for  a  church. 


652  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

which  was  crowned  with  his  accustomed  success.  At  this 
time  also  he  had  charge  of  the  important  mission  of  Sacra- 
mento, the  duties  of  which  he  performed  satisfactorily 
and  successfully. 

His  untiring  energy  was  afterwards  to  be  exerted  in  a 
new  field.  With  the  approbation  of  Archbishop  Ale- 
many  he  undertook^  in  1853,  the  publication  and  editorial 
management  of  the  Catholic  Standard  in  San  Francisco, 
which  did  good  service  in  the  cause  of  religion  and  mo- 
rality during  its  brief  career. 

Thus  was  the  time  of  Father  Gallagher  constantly  and 
usefully  employed  in  the  great  work  in  which  his  heart 
and  affections  were  centered.  To  labor  for  the  glory  of 
God  and  the  benefit  of  his  neighbor,  was  the  sacred  and 
inspiring  influence  that  caused  him  to  quit  his  home  and 
country,  to  sunder  the  bonds  of  love  and  reciprocated 
affection  which  united  him  to  his  dear  congregation  in 
Loretto ;  and  this  heaven-born  zeal  now  guided  him  in 
all  his  undertakings.  Though  frequently  obliged  in  the 
interests  of  the  church,  morality,  and  benevolence,  to  min- 
gle with  public  and  ^prominent  men,  he  ever  obtained  and 
preserved  the  respect  and  esteem  of  all  political  parties ; 
for  he  rose  far  above  all  party  distinctions  or  sectional 
feelings.  Thus  whatever  right,  favor  or  privilege  he 
sought  was  gracefully  conceded.  Such  was  the  confidence 
in  his  integrity,  even  among  those  who  differed  from  him 
in  religious  belief,  that  they  earnestly  cooperated  with  him 
in  every  measure  for  which  he  claimed  their  assistance. 

The  growing  wants  of  the  church  in  this  State  imper- 
atively demanded  renewed  exertions  to  meet  its  claims. 
The  members  of  the  priesthood  were  few  and  entirely 
inadequate  to  the  labors  required  of  them.  Religious 
institutions  were  limited  in  number.  There  was  no  hos- 
pital or  other  religious  charities  through  which  to  diffiise 
the  blessings  of  religion.  To  provide  for  all  these  wants 
which  pressed  heavily  on  the  heart  of  the  good  Arch- 
bishop, he  requested  Father  Gallagher  to  visit  the  Atlan- 
tic States  and  Europe,  and  in  his  name  to  make  arrange- 
ments for  securing  the  services  of  faithful  and  zealous 
priests  and   some  religious   communities.      He  left  San 


HUGH   P.    GALLAGHER.  653 

Francisco  for  this  purpose  on  the  1st  of  December,  1853, 
and  his  success  on  this  mission  surpassed  the  brightest 
anticipations.  Several  priests,  animated  with  a  holy  ar- 
dor, volunteered  to  accompany  him  to  the  distant  shores 
of  the  Pacific ;  fourteen  students  were  placed  in  ecclesi- 
astical institutions  in  Europe  to  complete  their  studies 
and  fit  them  for  the  great  work  of  the  ministry  in  Califor- 
nia. A  community  of  Sisters  of  Mercy,  numbering  sev- 
eral members,  who  had  adorned  the  highest  social  circles 
in  Ireland,  in  a  spirit  of  self-sacrifice  listened  to  the  irre- 
sistible appeal  of  Father  Gallagher,  and  cheerfully  left 
their  homes  to  minister  to  the  wants  of  the  stranger  in 
the  far  off  West.  With  what  fidelity  they  have  discharged 
this  sacred  duty,  the  whole  people  of  San  Francisco  can 
testify ;  for  they  have  witnessed  their  self-denying  labors  at 
all  times,  and  more  recently  the  noble  heroism  with  which 
these  ministering  angels  rushed  to  the  rescue  of  the  plague- 
stricken  patients  during  the  small-pox  epidemic  of  18G8- 
9.  A  community  of  Sisters  of  the  Presentation  generous- 
ly volunteered  to  dedicate  their  lives  for  the  benefit  of 
the  rising  generation  of  California.  Thousands  of  young 
ladies  in  San  Francisco  have  already  experienced  the  ad- 
vantages of  the  teachings  of  these  good  Sisters.  Whilst 
they  have  been  instructed  in  the  highest  grades  of  polite 
literature,  they  have  been  trained  gently  in  the  paths  of 
virtue,  purity  and  modesty,  to  shine  as  bright  ornaments 
in  society. 

Such  was  a  portion  of  the  work  of  Father  Gallagher 
during  his  visit  to  Europe.  He  received,  besides,  pecu- 
niary and  other  assistance  for  the  church  in  California. 
The  ex-Emperor  of  Austria,  Ferdinand,  gave  him  a  gener- 
ous donation ;  and  from  various  other  parties  he  received 
presents  of  vestments,  chalices  and  other  church  furniture 
to  a  very  large  amount.  The  diocese  reaped  a  rich  re- 
turn from  these  labors  of  love. 

It  was  then  the  intention  of  Father  Gallagher  to  re- 
turn to  his  dear  congregation  of  Loretto,  and  there  pass 
the  remainder  of  his  days  in  the  quiet  discharge  of  his 
priestly  duties ;  but,  at  the  urgent  solicitation  of  the  Most 
Reverend  Archbishop  Alemany,  he  was  prevailed  upon  to 


654  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

make  tlie  sacrifice  a  second  time,  and  smider  the  ties 
which  bound  him  to  his  cherished  home. 

The  great  panic  which  seized  our  whole  population  in 
1855,  in  consequence  of  the  failure  of  Adams'  Express  and 
Blinking  Company  ;  the  immense  losses  sustained  by  the 
mining  and  working  classes  by  that  bankruptcy;  and  the 
want  of  confidence  in  other  moneyed  institutions,  directed 
public  attention  to  Father  Gallagher  as  one  in  whose 
sterling  integrity  any  and  every  trust  might  be  reposed. 
Hundreds  called  on  him  requesting,  nay  begging  him  to 
take  on  deposit  for  safe  keeping  their  hard-earned  savings. 
His  was  not  the  heart  to  resist  the  entreaties  of  these  good 
people,  some  of  whom  had  been  swindled  out  of  the  gains 
of  years.  Although  he  consented  to  be  the  guardian  of  the 
fruits  of  their  toil,  it  was  with  extreme  reluctance,  for  his 
duties  in  the  ministry  occupied  almost  every  moment  of 
his  time.  He  was  unwilling  to  be  mixed  up  in  financial 
affairs,  knowing  with  what  a  jealous  eye  his  every  act 
would  be  scanned  by  a  community  which  had  just  passed 
through  a  crisis  in  which  thousands  had  been  reduced  to 
destitution  and  beggary.  His  only  thought  was  to  benefit 
those  confiding  people  to  the  best  of  his  ability;  and,  great 
as  was  the  demand  on  his  time  and  energies,  he  was  ready 
to  devote  himself  to  the  advantage  of  the  community.  De- 
positors, with  sums  varying  from  fifty  to  hundreds  and 
thousands  of  dollars,  crowded  in  upon  him.  His  little 
room,  which  heretofore  was  sacred  to  study  and  repose, 
vfas  now  converted  into  a  Banking  office,  without  the 
many  salaried  clerks  generally  found  in  such  institutions. 
Father  Gallagher  alone  performed  all  the  duties  of  Re- 
ceiver, Paying  Teller,  Treasurer,  Book-keeper  and  Presi- 
dent— all  without  fee  or  reward,  except  in  the  conscious 
satisfaction  that  he  was  laboring  honestly  and  successfully 
for  parties,  whose  confidence  and  esteem  were  more  pre- 
cious than  gold.  A  busy  scene  was  his  little  room  each 
day,  as  some  came  to  doposit,  and  others  to  draw  money. 
Millions  thus  passed  through  his  hands,  every  dime  of 
which  has  been  fully  and  satisfactorily  accounted  for. 

Such  constant  attention  to  these  matters  and  his  many 
other    occupations  began  to  make    inroads  on  his  con- 


HUGH   P.    GALLAGHER.  655 

stitution;  his  failing  health  warned  him  that  limits 
must  be  put  to  his  labors,  or  he  would  soon  fall  a  victim 
to  his  zeal.  He  settled  up  his  accounts  with  all  interest- 
ed, and  retired  from  this  business  with  the  benedictions 
of  all  who  had  been  depositors.  Few  men  in  this  venal 
age  can  present  a  brighter  or  more  enviable  record. 

Tired  and  worn  out  with  the  labors  of  the  preceding 
year,  the  Reverend  Father  was  compelled  to  leave  the  city 
and  retire  for  a  while  to  the  country,  with  a  view  to  re- 
pair his  health  and  reinvigorate  his  exhausted  energies. 
In  May,  1860,  he  proceeded  to  Yreka  for  this  purpose ; 
but  his  indefatigable  zeal  and  active  mind  would  not  per- 
mit him  to  take  that  rest  so  necessary  to  exhausted  na- 
ture. He  had  not  been  long  there  before  the  religious 
wants  of  the  poor  people  appealed  to  his  feelings,  and  in  a 
very  short  time  he  obtained  a  large  lot,  and  transformed  the 
capacious  house  of  Gen.  Colton  into  a  temporary  church. 

In  August,  1860,  he  set  out  for  Washoe,  which  was 
then  looming  in  the  distance  as  the  great  resort  of  the 
miners  of  the  Pacific  coast.  When  there,  he  found  ''the 
harvest  rich  but  the  laborers  few;"  and  at  once  went  to 
work  and  erected  three  churches — one  at  Carson,  one  in 
Yirginia  City,  and  one  in  Genoa — to  each  of  which  was 
attached  a  large  lot  of  ground,  and  a  cemetery  to  the  one 
in  Yirginia  City. 

In  1861,  with  the  approbation  of  Archbishop  Alemany, 
Father  Gallagher  undertook  to  supply  the  increasing  de- 
mand for  church  accommodation  in  San  Francisco.  While 
looking  for  land  for  this  purpose  he  was  presented  by  Hon. 
Horace  Hawes  with  the  large  lot  at  Tenth  and  Howard 
Streets,  and  erected  thereon  a  church  sufficiently  spacious 
as  was  deemed  at  that  time,  to  accommodate  the  congre- 
gation for  many  years ;  but  the  rapid  growth  of  the  city 
in  that  direction  soon  made  it  necessary  to  put  up  a  much 
larger  and  more  commodious  building.  The  zeal  and 
energy  of  Father  Gallagher  were  again  taxed  to  provide 
the  funds  for  its  erection.  His  appeal  to  the  congrega- 
tion and  his  fellow-citizens  was  met  with  a  promptness 
and  generosity,  which  showed  the  high  esteem  in  which 
he  was  held  by  them.     The  new  church  was  quickly  com- 


656  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF    THE    PACIFIC.  ^ 

pleted  and  paid  for,  and  the  old  one  converted  into  a 
Temperance  Hall  and  School-House.  Subsequent  ad- 
ditions and  improvements  to  the  new  church  have  made 
it  capable  of  seating  a  larger  audience  than  any  other 
church  edifice  in  San  Francisco.  The  school  accommoda- 
tions have  also  been  augmented^  so  that  at  the  present  time 
eleven  rooms  are  crowded  with  children  of  the  district. 

For  several  years  the  greatest  exertions  w^ere  required 
to  sustain  St.  Joseph's  school,  but  as  it  was  a  work  in 
which  the  dearest  interests  of  his  congregation  were  at 
stake,  Father  Gallagher  spared  neither  time  nor  labor  to 
make  it  a  success.  We  have  been  present  at  the  exam- 
inations and  exhibitions  of  this  school,  and  take  pleasure 
in  recording  our  high  estimation  of  the  proficiency  shown 
by  the  pupils  in  the  various  branches  of  study.  The 
pleasurable  emotions  which  filled  the  Rev.  Father's  heart, 
we  could  have  envied,  as  this  crowd  of  smiling,  happy 
innocents  gathered  around  him  daily.  He  seemed  con- 
tented, satisfied,  repaid  for  all  the  anxiety  and  labor  he 
had  expended  on  the  school.  He  has  thus  ranked  himself 
among  the  first  of  the  promoters  of  education  in  San 
Francisco. 

Prominent  among  the  causes  of  the  high  appreciation 
in  which  Father  Gallagher  was  held  by  his  fellow-citizens, 
may  be  placed  his  unselfish  zeal  in  the  cause  of  education. 
The  true,  unfailing  way  to  reach  the  hearts  of  parents,  is 
to  show  a  kind,  affectionate  interest  in  their  offspring;  and 
this  Father  Gallagher  has  done  so  effectually  as  to  secure 
the  confidence  and  affection  of  parents  and  children. 

In  our  notice  of  Rev.  Father  Gallagher,  we  should  be 
adjudged  derelict  in  our  duty,  did  we  fail  to  mention  ^ 
another  praiseworthy  institution  which  owes,  in  a  great 
measure,  its  origin  and  present  prosperity  to  his  zealous 
labors.  We  mean  the  Magdalen  Asylum.  The  worthy 
Sisters  of  Mercy,  filled  with  the  spirit  of  their  Divine 
Master,  who,  to  the  penitent  Magdalen,  said  ''many  sins 
are  forgiven  her  because  she  hath  loved  much,"  and 
took  her  under  his  special  protection,  to  save  her  from 
the  sneers  and  contempt  of  the  proud  Pharisee  or  the 
no  less  dangerous  solicitations  and  enticements  of  false 


HUGH    P.    GALLAGHER.  657 

friends,  had  already  established  a  home  and  shelter  for 
the  poor  fallen  daughters  of  Eve,  who  wished  to  abandon 
a  life  of  sin  and  infamy,  and  return  again  to  the  paths  of 
virtue  and  morality.  Already  had  those  chaste  servants 
of  God  rescued  many  an  erring  woman  and  thrown  the 
mantle  of  charity  over  their  past  transgressions  and  led 
them  in  the  way  of  sanctification  and  eternal  life.  But 
their  means  were  limited,  and  the  accommodation  insuf- 
ficient to  meet  the  constantly  increasing  demands  on  their 
charity.  It  was  under  these  circumstances  that  Father 
Gallagher  was  applied  to  by  the  good  Sisters,  to  assist 
them.  At  once  he  sought  our  venerable  Archbishop, 
and  readily  obtained  permission  to  undertake  the  erec- 
tion of  a  new  building  wdiich  should  serve  as  an  asylum 
for  penitent  women.  It  was  thought  that  an  edifice 
might  be  constructed  of  ample  dimensions  to  satisfy  the 
present  want,  at  an  outlay  of  eight  or  ten  thousand  dol- 
lars ;  but  such  a  building  was  not  equal  to  the  zeal  and 
charity  of  Father  Gallagher.  He  started  out  on  his  elee- 
mosynary peregrinations,  and  soon,  through  the  generos- 
ity and  public  spirit  of  the  citizens  of  San  Francisco,  had 
twenty-one  thousand  dollars  at  his  command.  Thus  en- 
couraged, he  laid  the  corner-stone  of  the  present  beautiful 
structure  on  the  San  Bruno  road  in  1865,  and  carried  it 
on  to  a  successful  termination.  Since  the  opening  of  the 
new  Asylum,  there  have  been  seldom  fewer  than  one 
hundred  inmates  within  its  walls. 

Few  citizens  can  realize  the  great,  noble,  and  divine 
work  of  charity  which  is  silently  and  unostentatiously 
carried  on  by  these  ministering  angels,  the  Sisters  of 
Mercy.  Eight  hundred  human  beings,  once  the  idolized 
objects  of  parental  endearment,  the  pride  and  joy  of  the 
household  hearth,  who  listened  to  the  seductive  voice  of 
deceivers,  had  fallen  and  become  objects  of  contempt,  at 
whom  the  finger  of  scorn  was  pointed — worse  than  plague 
spots  on  the  community — lost  to  society  and  to  God — 
sunk  into  the  lowest  depths  of  immorality  and  vice — have 
been  reclaimed,  regenerated,  restored  to  society  and  God, 
in  the  Magdalen  Asylum  of  San  Francisco,  through  the 
patient,  gentle,  merciful  influence  of  the  Sisters  of  Mercy. 
42 


658  REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OF  THE  PACIFIC. 

Thus  to  the  exertions  of  Father  Gallagher,  hundreds 
of  parents,  whose  hearts  had  been  wrung  by  the  fall  of 
their  daughters,  whose  hoary  heads  were  hastening  to  a 
premature  and  dishonored  grave,  are  indebted  for  the 
Asylum,  where  their  lost  ones  have  been  sheltered  from 
the  attacks  of  their  enemies,  protected  from  the  cold  and 
ofttimes  cruel  charity  of  the  world,  and  trained  in  the 
glorious  paths  of  virtue  and  morality.  This  is  effected  by 
the  pure,  simple,  devoted,  self-sacrificing  lives  of  those 
heroic  Sisters,  as  well  as  by  the  words  of  learning  and  divine 
charity  in  which  they  are  daily  instructed.  As  there  is 
joy  in  the  celestial  mansions  among  the  blessed  spirits 
which  surround  the  Throne  of  Grace,  on  one  sinner  do- 
ing penance,  so  here  on  earth  the  parental  hearth  and 
heart  have  been  gladdened,  when  the  poor,  weak,  frail 
one  has  sought  refuge  in  the  Magdalen  Asylum.  A  warm, 
fervent  prayer,  gushing  up  from  the  bruised  and  bleeding 
heart,  has  ascended  like  the  fumes  of  sweet  incense  to  the 
footstool  of  Mercy,  in  thanksgiving  for  the  return  of  the 
prodigal,  and  in  earnest  supplication  that  blessings  in- 
numerable should  be  granted  to  the  Sisters  of  Mercy, 
and  good  Father  Gallagher. 

It  is  not  our  purpose,  nor  is  it  necessary,  to  enter  into 
further  details  of  the  labors  of  this  indefatigable  divine. 
Firm  and  consistent  in  all  the  teachings  of  the  Catholic 
church,  zealous  and  exact  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties 
as  a  minister  of  that  church,  he  has  not  only  secured  the 
approbation  and  affection  of  his  ecclesiastical  superiors 
and  the  congregations  committed  to  his  care,  but  has 
conciliated  the  respect  and  esteem  of  those  who  differ 
from  him  in  religious  tenets.  •Catholic  in  all  the  feelings 
of  head  and  heart,  he  pursues  ''  the  even  tenor  of  his 
way,"  intent  alone  in  extending  the  kingdom  of  his 
Heavenly  Master,  and  diffusing  on  earth  peace  and  good 
will  to  men.  His  zeal  in  the  ministry,  his  distinguished 
ability  and  learning,  his  labors  for  the  promotion  of  edu- 
cation, his  efforts  in  the  cause  of  morality,  and  the  gen- 
eral success  of  all  his  undertakings,  entitle  him  to  be 
classed  among  the  Representative  Men  of  California. 

The  various  articles  furnished   by  Father  Gallagher 


HUGH    P.  GALLAGHER.  659 

while  acting  as  editor,  prove  that  he  wields  a  facile  pen 
with  force  and  vigor.  Earnest  and  impressive,  he  also 
ranks  high  as  a  pulpit  orator.  The  extract  which  follows 
this  sketch  is  a  specimen  of  his  descriptive  powers  and 
style. 


(Extract  from  a  ^cctuit  on  §omt, 

Delivered  in  St.  Joseph's  Church,  Tenth  Street,  San  Francisco,  in  1862. 
BY  REV.  FATHER  HUGH  P.  GALLAGHER. 

Towards  evening  of  the  13th  April,  1854,  the  Padrone,  as  he  is 
called  (that  is,  the  conductor  of  our  conveyance)  directed  my  atten- 
tion to  an  object  just  dimly  visible  from  that  point  of  the  road  lead- 
ing from  Civita  Vecchia  to  Rome:  it  was  the  great  dome  of  St. 
Peter's !  I  felt  with  gratitude  that  the  day-dream  of  my  life  from 
boyhood  was  at  length  promised  an  early  realization.  I  was  soon 
to  stand  within  the  city  of  Romulus  and  Remus — the  Eternal  City, 
the  works  of  whose  historians,  poets,  and  orators,  had  been  the 
labors  of  my  early  years.  As  I  conned  each  stubborn  line  of  her 
ancient  classics,  whether  prose  or  verse,  I  had  to  become  familiar 
with  her  feuds,  wars,  conquests,  treaties,  conspu*acies,  revolu- 
tions, changes  of  government,  and  laws — even  her  very  topo- 
graphy. It  seemed  as  if  I  could  find  my  way  through  the  streets 
of  ancient  Rome  at  midnight  without  a  lamp;  that  I  could  recognize 
her  heroes,  officials,  and  authors,  at  sight,  and  hold  familiar  con- 
verse with  them  without  the  formality  of  an  introduction.  Whatever 
fourteen  years' companionshij^  with  one  of  the  most  distinguished  gra- 
duates and  professors  of  the  Propaganda  left  undone  in  f amiharizing 
me  with  the  very  arcana  of  Christian  Rome,  was  more  than  supplied 
by  the  accurate  description  of  Baron  Geramb;  and  since  I  became 
an  ecclesiastic.  Christian  or  modern  Rome  has  been  all  to  me. 

From  the  moment  I  got  the  first  glimpse  of  the  city,  I  could 
scarcely  withdraw  my  eyes  from  it  for  an  instant.  Such  were  my  un- 
founded fears  at  that  moment,  that  only  by  identifying  my  com- 
panions could  I  reassure  myself  that  I  must  not  again  experience 
the  disappointment  of  the  morning  dream :  as  the  exile  far  away  oft 
in  visions  of  slumber  revisits  the  home  of  his  childhood,  but  wakes  to 
disappointment — the  loved  ones  disappearing  with  his  sleep — he  re- 
fuses to  withdraw  his  eyes  or  to  relax  his  grasp,  determined,  this 
time,  from  more  vivid  phantasm  to  force  reality. 

That  night  I  slept  within  the  city  of  the  seven  hills — ^the  city  of 
the  Caesars — where  dwells  the  visible  Head  of  the  Church,  the  direct 


660  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF    THE    PACIFIC. 

successor  of  St.  Peter,  the  reigning  vicar  of  our  blessed  Lord!  Be- 
times next  morning,  I  hastened  to  gratify  my  anxious  eyes  by  behold- 
ing him.  For  this  purpose,  I  sought  the  Sistine  Chapel,  and  was 
not  disappointed.  My  success,  however,  in  gaining  admittance  there, 
■where  so  many  w^ere  unfortunate,  was  the  result  of  a  lucky  expedient. 
To  avoid  crowding,  tickets  of  free  admission  to  the  Pope's  chapel 
are  issued  to  those  who  make  timely  application.  This  privilege  is 
sought  to  be  monopolized  by  members  of  royal  families  visiting  tliere, 
foreign  ambassadors  and  their  suites.  Clergy  are  admitted,  but  they 
must  present  themselves  in  ecclesiastical  costume — a  sutane  and 
clerical  hat.  In  my  impatience  to  be  there,  I  neglected  these  re- 
quirements, and  presented  myself  in  my  usual  apparel.  With  many 
others,  I  was  refused  admittance  by  the  Swiss  guard,  who,  under  the 
command  of  Capt.  Schmidt,  sentineled  the  entrance.  To  the  re- 
monstrance of  a  member  of  the  Pope's  household  in  my  behalf,  the 
captain's  answer  was  that  "  his  instructions  w^ere  peremptory'. "  As 
the  rest  retired  disappointed,  I  addressed  the  old  commander,  now 
at  leisure,  quite  familiarly  in  stout  Teutonic,  his  mother  tongue. 
The  gallant  and  warm-hearted  old  veteran,  thinking  it  too  bad 
tliat,  having  journeyed  from  the  uttermost  bounds  of  the  earth,  I 
should  be  disappointed,  politely  allowed  me  to  pass  in,  remarking  that 
my  slight  foreign  accent,  in  the  pronunciation  of  some  German 
words,  was  doubtless  caused  by  emigrating  from  Fatherland  when 
young.  It  was  a  slight  mistake.  To  have  corrected  it,  would  not 
have  helped  my  purpose;  so  he  enjoyed  his  theory  and  I  my  choice 
seat  in  the  Sistine  chapel. 

In  the  sanctuary  just  before  me  sat  the  sovereign  pontiff,  Pius 
the  Ninth,  suiTounded  by  cardinals  and  prelates,  celebrating  the 
Mass  of  the  Presanctified — the  most  solemn  commemoration  of  our 
Lord's  passion  and  death — for  it  was  Good  Friday.  His  hands  were 
joined,  his  countenance  turned  gently  upwards,  and  those  large, 
lustrous  eyes  fixed  immovable,  as  though  rivetted  on  objects  beyond 
the  clouds — on  the  dread  mysteries  of  eternity. 

At  the  proper  signal,  all  engaged  in  the  ceremonies  formed  in 
solemn  procession,  and  passed  just  by  me  to  the  Pauline  chapel; 
whence  they  returned  in  a  few  moments,  the  Pope  bearing  the  Most 
Blessed  Sacrament  under  a  gorgeous  canopy.  I  was  but  too  happy 
in  being  permitted  to  join  the  procession  in  which  were  corporeally 
present  the  visible  and  invisible  Head  of  the  Church — Peter  and  his 
Divine  Master.  How  amply  did  the  weather-beaten,  Avayvvorn  pil- 
grim from  the  distant  Pacific  feel  rewarded  in  finding  himself,  at  his 
journey's  end,  in  the  company  of  Peter,  and  the  Apostles,  and  the 
Lord  himself !  What  powerful  incentive  to  his  cherished  faith,  that 
alone  explains  the  supernatural,  to  find  himself  in  physical  contact 
with  the  living  link  of  that  unbroken  chain  that  unites  him  with  the 
Deity !  In  the  consolations  of  that  moment,  he  felt  his  holy  faith 
enkindled,  intensified,  illumined,  and  rewarded:  in  a  word,  the 
nearest  approximation  to  penetration  behind  the  veil  of  faith — to  the 
fruition  of  vision,  the  realization  of  the  promise,  "I  am  with  you." 

At  tliree  o'clock  p.  m.  of  the  same  day,  the  same  sacred  edifice  was 


HUGH    P.  GALLAGHER.  661 

thronged  by  crowds  to  witness  the  office  of  Tenebrae,  and  gratify  their 
love  of  the  marvelous  by  hearing  the  world-renowned  Miserere  sung 
by  the  Pope's  choir.  The  Tenebrae  is  the  ordinary  office  of  those  three 
great  days  of  Holy  Week,  performed  solemnly  in  the  larger  churches. 
The  trij)le  or  triangular  candlestick  is  placed,  having  fifteen  candles 
lighted.  As  the  office  proceeds,  fourteen  of  the  candles  are  gradually 
extinguished,  indicating  the  death  of  the  prophets,  or  the  extinguish- 
ing of  those  lights  of  the  people  of  God.  The  fifteenth  is  finally 
removed  behind  the  altar,  indicating  the  death  of  our  blessed  Lord, 
and  the  fulfilment  of  all  the  prophecies.  On  its  removal,  the  clergy 
knock  gently  on  the  cover  of  their  books,  representing  the  earthquake 
that  occurred  at  the  moment  He  expired  on  the  cross.  This  done, 
the  candle  is  brought  back  unextinguished,  and  replaced,  represent- 
ing that  He  has  arisen,  to  die  no  more — the  unfading  light  of  the 
world !  This  psalm  commences  as  the  wailing  of  a  guilty  world 
and  its  suppliant  cry  for  mercy.  Mid  the  earthquake's  rumblings, 
a  solitary  voice  is  heard  in  deep,  pathetic,  plaintive  tones,  crying, 
' '  Have  m  ercy  on  me ,  O  God !  according  to  thy  gTeat  mercy !"  Number- 
less voices  just  then  become  audible,  as  the  spirits  of  a  thousand 
worlds  catching  the  tone  of  supplication:  "And  according- to  the 
multitude  of  thy  tender  mercies,  blot  out  our  iniquities!"  At  the 
verse,  Averte  faciem  tuam  ("Turn  away  thy  face  from  my  sins")  the 
petition  is  caught  up,  and  wafted  higher  and  higher  by  different, 
shall  I  say  relays  of  voices,  as  though  these  souls  would  carry  their 
supplications  to  the  very  feet  of  the  Most  High. 

Wliile  these  plaintive  notes  are  dying  away  in  the  distance,  the 
tone  is  caught  up  by  a  solitary  voice,  as  of  an  angel  bending  dov/n 
from  the  skies  to  receive  that  petition  and  lay  it  before  the  Throne 
of  Mercy.  That  voice  is  listened  to,  as  it  files  heavenwards,  until  it 
becomes  inaudible  in  the  clouds.  At  that  moment,  you  hear  the 
rapt  audience  endeavoring  to  supply  by  a  long  inhalation  the  ex- 
haustion they  experienced  in  f olloAving  with  bated  breath  the  angel's 
flight.  As  you  enjoy  this  celestial  chant,  you  hear  the  full  vibrations 
of  the  dulcet-toned  string  and  the  clear  silvery  ring  of  the  wind  in- 
struments; but  it  is  a  deception.  There  is  naught  there  but  the 
perfected  harmony  of  the  human  voice :  there  are  no  sounds  in  the 
Pope's  choir  but  the  voices  of  men! 


^4^   Of  THx'^ 

'iriri7BR:iT7] 


/r/^/?^ 


HENRY  HUNTLY  HAIGHT. 


HENRY  HuNTLY  Haight  was  bom  at  Rochester,  in  the 
State  of  New  York,  May  20th,  a.d.  1825.  His 
ancestors  were  English  on  the  paternal  side,  the  first  one 
who  emigrated  to  America,  Jonathan  Teal  Haight,  having 
come  to  New  York  from  England  under  the  old  Dutch 
regime.  On  the  maternal  side,  he  is  descended  from  the 
old  Scottish  family  or  clan  of  Cameron,  his  great  grand- 
father, Ewen  Cameron — a  cousin  of  the  celebrated 
Lochiel — having  come  to  New  York  from  Scotland  in 
1790,  and  settled  in  the  western  part  of  the  State.  His 
father,  the  late  Fletcher  M.  Haight,  a  law}^er  of  eminence 
and  distinguished  ability,  and  who  was  at  the  time  of 
his  death,  Judge  of  the  United  States  District  Court  for 
the  Southern  District  of  California,  was  also  a  resident 
of  western  New  York,  where,  with  the  exception  of  a 
few  years  in  St.  Louis,  he  lived  until  he  removed  to 
California  in  1854. 

Mr.  Haight  was  the  eldest  son  of  a  large  family  of 
children.  He  entered  Yale  College  at  the  age  of  fifteen 
years,  from  whence  he  graduated  in  1844;  and  having 
decided  to  adopt  as  a  profession  one  that  had  been 
hereditary  in  his  family  for  several  generations — that  of 
the  law — entered  at  once  upon  its  study  in  the  law  office 
of  his  father.  In  1846,  his  father  removing  to  St.  Louis, 
Mr.  Haight  accompanied  him,  and  was  shortly  afterwards 
admitted  to  the  bar  by  the  Supreme  Court  of  Missouri. , 
He  immediately  commenced  the  practice  of  law  in  St. 
Louis,  in  connection  with  his  father,  and  remained  there 


664  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

until  late  in  1849,  when  he  turned  his  steps  towards  the 
newly  acquired  territory  on  the  Pacific.  He  arrived  in 
San  Francisco  on  the  20th  of  January,  1850,  then  a  small 
town,  its  dwellings  consisting  principally  of  tents  and 
rough  board  shanties;  and  although  its  population  was 
already  large,  yet  by  far  the  greater  portion  consisted  of 
persons  who  were  making  it  but  a  temporary  stopping- 
place  on  their  way  to  the  mines.  Among  those,  however, 
whose  faith  was  strong  in  the  future  greatness  and  pros- 
perity of  San  Francisco  was  Mr.  Haight,  and  he  decided 
at  once  to  make  it  his  home.  He  immediately  com- 
menced practicing  law,  first  in  connection  with  the  late 
Gen.  J.  A.  McDougall,  and  later  with  his  father,  who  had 
followed  him  to  California.  His  abilities  were  soon  ac- 
knowledged; and  young  as  he  was,  he  soon  occupied  an 
eminent  position  in  the  front  rank  of  the  bar  of  Cali- 
fornia, and  which  he  has  ever  maintained. 

From  the  time  of  his  arrival  in  San  Francisco  until 
the  spring  of  1867,  he  has  resided  and  practiced  law  in 
that  city,  with  the  exception  of  a  short  absence  in  the 
Eastern  States,  during  which  he  was  united  in  marriage 
to  a  daughter  of  the  late  Capt.  Bissell  of  St.  Louis. 

In  1867,  he  removed  his  residence  to  Alameda  county, 
continuing,  however,  his  law  practice  in  San  Francisco, 
until  called  by  the  people,  in  the  fall  of  that  year,  to  as- 
sume the  office  of  Chief  Alagistrate  of  the  State. 

He  had  never  been,  with  but  one  exception  up  to  the 
time  of  his  nomination  for  Governor  in  1867,  actively 
engaged  in  any  political  struggle.  Occupying  the  promi- 
nent position  he  always  has  during  his  long  residence  in 
San  Francisco,  he  had  often  been  pressed  by  his  friends 
to  accept  nominations  for  judicial  and  other  honorable 
offices,  but  had  invariably  declined.  Although  taking  a 
jealous  interest  in  the  affiiirs  of  the  country  and  the 
cburse  of  events,  he  had  never,  beyond  an  occasional 
article  from  his  pen,  entered  publicly  into  the  discussion 
of  the  political  questions  of  the  day,  until  the  Presiden- 
tial campaign  of  1864,  in  which  he  took  part  with  the 
conservative  party  in  the  support  of  Geo.  B.  McClellan. 

It  would  not  be  proper  here  to  enter  into  an  examina- 


HENRY  HUNTLY  HAIGHT.  665 

tion  of  the  political  questions  that  then  agitated  the 
people,  and  we  have  but  mentioned  the  subject  to  show 
that  the  course  pursued  by  Mr.  Haight  and  the  constitu- 
tional principles  announced  by  him  in  that  memorable 
campaign,  were  remembered  and  approved  of  by  the 
people  of  California  when  they  elected  him  Governor  of 
the  State  three  years  afterwards  by  the  large  majority  of 
nine  thousand  and  five  hundred. 

He  was  nominated  for  that  position  by  the  Democratic 
State  Convention  that  met  in  San  Francisco  in  June, 
186 7.  He  had  at  first  steadily  declined  to  allow  his  name 
to  be  used  before  the  convention,  but  at  last,  yielding  to 
the  pressing  solicitations  of  his  friends,  he  consented. 
His  name  v/as  presented  to  the  convention  by  the  Hon. 
J.  B.  Crockett,  who  prefaced  the  nomination  by  the  fol- 
lowing remarks,  to  the  truthfulness  of  which  any  one 
who  has  personally  known  Mr.  Haight  for  any  length  of 
time,  will  cordially  assent: 

I  rise  to  perform  an  agreeable  duty  in  presenting  for  the  high 
office  of  Governor  of  the  State  of  Cahfornia,  a  gentleman  whom  I  have 
known  from  his  boyhood.  I  have  known  him  twenty  years;  and  I 
can  say,  truthfully  say,  that  I  have  never  known  a  truer,  better,  more 
honest,  or  more  upright  man  than  he  whose  name  I  will  present  to 
the  convention;  a  man  distinguished  for  his  integrity  and  perfect 
uprightness  of  character  in  all  the  walks  of  life;  a  man  against  whom 
not  a  word  of  reproach  has  been  or  is  likely  to  be  uttered;  a  man  in 
whose  keeping  the  honor  and  welfare  of  the  State  will  be  perfectly 
safe;  a  man  who  will  be  a  party  to  no  scheme,  who  will  not  yield  to 
any  corrupt  influences,  and  w^lio  will  administer  the  government  of 
the  State  with  ability,  in  the  spirit  of  the  constitution  and  the  laws; 
and  who  will  do  honor  to  the  office  and  to  the  party  which  elects 
him.  And  I  do  now  nominate  for  the  office  of  Governor  of  Cah- 
fornia, Henry  H.  Haight. 

The  remarks  of  Judge  Crockett  were  received  with 
great  applause,  and  Mr.  Haight  was  immediately  nomi-- 
nated  by  acclamation.  His  principal  opponent  in  the- 
campaign  was  George  C.  Gorham,  the  nominee  of  the 
Republican  party.  The  contest  was  a  most  spirited  and 
exciting  one,  probably  more  so  than  any  previous  guber- 
natorial election  that  ever  took  place  in  the  State,  not 
even  excepting  the  memorable  struggle  of  September,, 


666  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC.  "^ 

1859.  The  election  resulted  in  the  triumph  of  the  entire 
Democratic  State  ticket,  Mr.  Haight's  majority  over  Mr. 
Gorham  being  as  already  stated. 

There  is  probably  no  better  or  surer  method  of  ascer- 
taining the  position  occupied  by  a  man  in  the  opinion  of 
his  fellow-citizens,  and  the  character  he  bears  among 
them,  than  for  him  to  become  a  candidate  for  some  pro- 
minent office,  especially  at  a  time  when  party  feeling 
runs  high.  Every  act  of  his  life,  and  every  word  that  he 
has  ever  spoken  that  can  by  any  known  mode  of  conclu- 
sion or  misconstruction  be  made  to  bear  upon  the  ques- 
tion at  issue  and  turned  against  him,  are  immediately 
blazoned  forth  in  the  public  journals.  Not  only  is  his 
public  life  subjected  to  the  scrutiny  of  his  political  op- 
ponents, but  his  private  life  and  affairs,  and  the  motives 
that  may  have  influenced  him  in  any  particular  matter, 
are  dragged  forth  and  commented  upon  w^ith  perfect 
freedom.  To  a  reasonable  extent,  it  is  right  enough  that 
such  should  be  the  case,  but  party  zeal  often  oversteps  its 
legitimate  boundary,  and  engages  in  systematic  defama- 
tion and  abuse.  The  man  who  successfully  passes  through 
such  an  ordeal  and  escapes  therefrom  with  untarnished 
reputation,  is  to  be  considered  something  more  than  for- 
tunate; and  no  better  proof  can  be  adduced  of  the  high 
moral  standard  of  Mr.  Haight  than  to  say,  that  during 
the  entire  gubernatorial  contest  just  alluded  to,  bitter  as 
it  was,  no  attempt  was  made  to  attack  his  private  char- 
acter. 

Gov.  Haight  was  inaugurated  December  5th,  1867, 
and  since  then  has  administered  the  State  government 
with  general  acceptance.  His  official  term  as  Governor 
expires  in  December,  1871. 


HENRY  HUNTLY  HAIGHT.  667 


lutteis, 


Delivered  at  Sacramento,  Cal.,  May  8th,  1869,  upon  the  Completion  of  the  Pacific 

Eailroad. 


BY  GOVERNOK  H.  H.  HAIGHT. 

Fellow-Citizens  :  We  meet  to-day  to  celebrate  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  events  of  this  eventful  age,  and  whose  influence  upon 
the  future  of  our  countiy  and  upon  human  destiny  it  would  be  diffi- 
cult properly  to  measure;  one  of  the  grandest  tiiumphs  of  American 
enterprise,  engineering,  and  constructive  skill  and  energy  of  which 
our  history  can  boast.  It  ushers  in  a  new  era  in  American  progress, 
and  while  it  is  an  event  of  world-wide  significance,  it  is  one  of  special 
importance  to  our  own  country  and  our  own  State. 

I  recollect  some  years  ago  looking  at  a  picture,  which  many  of 
}  ou  doubtless  have  seen,  representing  a  family  of  pioneers  who  had 
accomplished  the  tedious  journey  overland,  and  having  reached  the 
crest  of  the  Sierras,  stood  gazing  with  enraptured  vision  upon  the 
magnificent  panorama  which  extended  before  their  eyes  in  the  Valley 
of  the  Sacramento.  The  noble  river  in  the  distance  seemed  like  a 
silver  thread  meandering  through  the  great  valley;  the  purple  sum- 
mits of  the  Coast  Kange  rose  in  front  to  the  westward,  and  far  to  the 
south  stretched  the  fertile  plains  of  the  San  Joaquin,  until  in  the 
soft  haze  of  our  landscapes  their  limit  was  lost  in  the  horizon. 

In  a  metaphorical  sense  we  stand  upon  such  an  eminence  to-day. 
Behind  us  is  the  rugged  journey,  with  its  desert  sands,  its  savage 
tribes,  its  cooling  springs,  making  oases,  where  at  times  we  have 
rested  from  our  toil;  around  us  is  the  pure  air  and  over  us  the  blue 
sky,  while  within  us  our  hearts  beat  high  with  hope  and  confidence, 
and  before  us  lies  in  its  beauty  the  rich  prospect  of  our  boundless 
future. 

In  looking  back  over  our  journey,  did  time  permit,  one  would  be 
tempted  to  extend  the  re\dew  beyond  our  own  personal  experience, 
and  the  history  of  our  own  State  and  country,  to  note  a  few  of  the 
most  memorable  epochs  which  have  marked  human  progress  during 
the  eighteen  centuries  that  are  pa^t.  To  trace  the  history  of  civih- 
zation,  however,  dui'ing  this  period  would  require  far  more  than  the 
time  now  allotted,  and  is  a  subject  which  would  task  the  loftiest 
powers.  Otherwise,  it  might  be  interesting  to  dwell  upon  those 
prominent  epochs  which  have  signalized  the  progress  of  mankind, 
since  the  advent  of  Christianity  marked  an  advance  from  paganism 
to  theism,  and  from  a  religion  of  forms  to  one  of  spirit;  from  the 
time  when  the  code  of  Justinian  marked  a  memorable  era  in  legisla- 
tion, to  the  period  when  Magna  Charta  developed  a  new  and  rational 
theory  of  government,  and  thence  to  the  enlightenment  of  the  present 
dav.  This  progress,  it  is  true,  has  not  been  uniform  or  constant. 
The  tide  has  had  its  ebb  as  well  as  its  flood.     There  have  been  tem- 


668  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

porary  retrogressions  in  almost  every  department  of  human  activity — 
in  science,  in  government,  and  in  religion. 

Nations  have  exchanged  places  in  the  scale;  some  have  relinquished 
freedom  for  despotic  rule,  religious  liberty  for  blind  superstition, 
power  for  weakness,  and  science  for  ignorance,  while  other  nations 
have  risen  from  barbarism  to  the  heights  of  knowledge,  and  from 
small  beginnings  have  attained  greatness  in  the  arts  and  sciences,  in 
freedom,  wealth,  and  power. 

The  great  nations  of  the  present  day  are  none  of  them  ten  cen- 
turies old.  England's  greatness  dates  from  the  revolution  of  1640, 
before  modern  civilization  had  penetrated  the  domain  of  the  Czar, 
before  the  Prussian  monarchy  or  the  American  Kepublic  were  known 
among  the  nations,  when  Spain  was  the  leading  power  on  land,  and 
Holland  was  mistress  of  the  seas. 

Human  progress  for  the  last  two  centuries  has  known  little  pause. 
Dynasties  have  risen  and  fallen;  revolutions  and  civil  wars  have 
deluged  portions  of  the  world  with  blood;  but  heretofore  good  has 
been  evolved  out  'of  evil,  and,  during  war  and  peace,  political 
changes  and  national  vicissitudes,  the  minds  of  men  have  been  year 
by  year  more  emancipated  from  thraldom,  and  more  active  in  investi- 
gation, and  in  useful  invention  and  discovery. 

In  the  history  of  human  progress  it  seems  to  us  as  if  the  chapter 
devoted  to  the  present  century  would  fill  as  large  a  space  as  the 
eighteen  centuries  which  have  preceded  it.  It  is  now  but  little  more 
than  two-thirds  gone,  and  yet  what  improvements  and  discoveries 
it  has  witnessed.  When  the  last  century  closed,  and  for  some  years 
afterwards,  no  steamboat  had  been  built.  Nearly  a  fourth  of  the 
present  century  had  passed  before  railway  construction  was  in- 
augurated, and  nearly  half  of  it  was  gone  before  electricity  was 
pressed  into  man's  service,  as  his  messenger  to  annihilate  distance 
and  bring  into  instant  intercourse  the  most  remote  islands  and  con- 
tinents. Anthracite  coal  was  never  used  as  fuel  in  dwellings,  nor 
was  any  city  lighted  with  coal  gas  until  after  the  year  1800. 

Time  would  fail  to  enumerate  even  the  most  important  discov- 
eries and  inventions  of  this  century.  In  locomotion,  in  the  art  of 
printing,  in  weaving  and  sewing  by  machinery,  in  dyeing  and  color- 
ing; in  hydraulics  and  optics;  in  the  application  to  machinery  of 
steam  and  hot  air;  in  the  thousand  improvements  in  fire-arms;  in 
light,  lighthouses,  and  lightning;  in  photography,  from  the  daguerre- 
otype to  the  card  photograph;  in  agricultural  implements;  in  cabinet 
work  and  house-building;  in  steam  navigation;  in  ship  building;  in 
railways  and  electro-magnetic  telegraphs,  with  their  various  appa- 
ratus of  wire  and  cable,  and  printing;  in  house  warming;  in  lighting 
streets  and  dwellings;  in  metal  pipes  and  tubing;  in  sewerage  and 
drainage;  in  cotton,  wool,  flax,  hemp,  and  silk  production  and  man- 
ufacture— in  all  these  and  many  other  channels  the  minds  of  men 
have  been  busy  and  fruitful  during  the  sixty-nine  years  of  the  present 
century,  until  the  limit  of  invention  seems  to  be  almost  reached  and 
human  ingenuity  exhausted. 

Marshall's  discovery  of  the  particles  of  gold  in  the  mill-race  at 


HENRY  HUNTLY  HAIGHT.  669 

Coloma,  was  the  beginning  of  a  great  revolution  in  the  commerce 
and  business  of  the  world,  and  in  the  nominal  .value  of  labor  and 
property.  It  changed  our  geography,  and  gave  a  new  expansion  to 
American  ideas.  What  had  before  seemed  hyperbole,  became  real- 
ity; the  empty  boasts  of  stump  orators  seemed  about  to  be  verified 
by  facts.  The  treaty  of  Guadalupe  Hidalgo  had  secured  us  in  pos- 
session of  the  fairest,  the  most  genial  and  fruitful  part  of  the  Ameri- 
can continent,  and  as  we  in  our  partial  judgment  think,  of  the  globe. 
We  had  almost  realized  the  poet's  dream  of  exchanging  our  "pent-up 
Utica"  for  "the  whole  boundless  continent."  We  still  lacked  the 
British  Possessions  and  Mexico,  but  we  were  in  the  position  of  one 
gorged  with  food  and  incajDacitated  from  further  indulgence,  until 
time  was  allowed  for  digestion  and  assimilation.  I  speak  of  a  revo- 
lution in  the  commerce  and  business  of  the  world,  and  in  the  value 
of  labor  and  property.  Two  substances  alone,  gold  and  silver,  are 
an  accepted  standard  of  value  and  a  universal  medium  of  exchange. 
Like  all  other  articles,  the  intrinsic  value  of  these  metals  is  regulated 
by  the  quantity  produced,  the  cost  of  production,  and  the  demand 
for  their  use.  The  demand  has  increased  with  the  expansion  of  com- 
merce, but  its  increase  bears  no  ratio  to  the  increased  supply.  The 
whole  amount  of  gold  and  silver  in  the  old  world  at  the  discovery  of 
America  was  estimated  to  be  $170,000,000,  and  the  total  annual 
product  of  gold  in  the  world  for  some  years  previous  to  1848,  was 
but  $20,000,000.  At  this  rate  it  would  have  required  a  century  to 
produce  $2,000,000,000.  Within  the  past  twenty  years  there  have 
been  added  to  the  stock  of  j^recious  metals  more  than  this  latter  sum. 

The  obvious  result  would  be,  as  it  has  been,  to  diminish  the  ex- 
changeable value  of  gold  and  silver,  so  that  to  procure  many  of  the 
necessaries  and  comforts  of  life  requires  about  three  times  as  much 
money  as  it  did  twenty  years  ago. 

This,  however,  is  not  the  time  to  weary  you  with  statistics,  or  dis- 
cuss questions  of  political  economy.  The  Oregon  and  Mexican 
treaties  gave  us  a  new  geography;  but  neither  Oregon,  with  its 
majestic  river,  its  productive  soil,  and  its  "  continuous  woods,"  nor 
California  with  its  healthful  and  equable  climate,  was  accessible 
to  immigration  by  any  except  the  roving  trapper  and  frontiersman. 
Trackless  deserts,  infested  by  tribes  of  Indians,  and  lofty  mountain 
ranges  intervened  between  the  States  of  the  Union  and  the  newly- 
acquired  territory  along  the  Pacific. 

The  thirst  for  gold  in  1849  and  the  few  following  years  stimulated 
a  multitude  to  defy  all  dangers  aud  difficulties  in  the  effort  to  reach 
the  new  El  Dorado.  An  almost  continuous  line  of  emigrants  crossed 
the  plains  and  reached  the  Pacific,  way-worn  with  travel,  and  deci- 
mated by  famine,  pestilence,  and  massacre.  Another  army  crowded 
steamers  and  sailing  vessels  for  the  Isthmus  of  Panama,  and  en- 
countered the  miasma  of  the  tropics  and  the  discomforts  of  a  voyage 
in  over-crowded  and  ill-supplied  vessels.  Thus,  by  sea  and  land,  the 
stream  of  adventurers  poured  into  the  region  of  gold.  Europe  added 
its  contribution,  and  the  penal  colonies  of  Great  Britain  also — some 
of  which  latter  was  of  indifferent  quality. 


670  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

So  they  came  in  1849  and  1850,  a  vast  throng,  mostly  men  in  the 
prime  of  life,  full  of  adventurous  energy — the  ^lite  of  the  enterprise 
of  older  countries,  carrying  with  them,  in  spite  of  some  vicious  and 
dangerous  elements,  a  large  infusion  of  Anglo-Saxon  respect  for  law, 
order,  and  constituted  authority. 

The  tract  of  emigration  across  the  plains  was  dotted  with  the 
graves  of  those  who  fell  by  the  way,  and  in  the  lack  of  ordinary  com- 
forts multitudes  more  would  have  soon  found  a  grave  in  California 
but  for  the  salubrity  of  its  climate. 

The  early  emigration  was  composed  of  heterogeneous  elements. 
All  forms  of  vice  and  dissipation  were  indulged  unblushingly  by  men 
and  women  set  loose  from  the  restraints  of  settled  society,  and  freed 
from  the  control  of  a  sound  public  sentiment.  There  were  many 
noble  spirits  who  labored  to  lay  broad  and  deep  the  foundations  of 
religious,  educational,  and  charitable  institutions,  and  to  organize 
Republican  government  on  these  shores.  Some  of  them  have  rested 
from  their  labors,  leaving  behind  them  monuments  more  enduring 
than  marble,  and  some  are  still  pursuing  their  career  of  usefulness 
among  us. 

In  looking  back  at  the  past,  how  checkered  is  the  prospect!  Con- 
flagrations have  swept  our  cities  and  towns  with  the  besom  of  de- 
struction. The  commercial  metropolis  of  the  State  has  more  than 
once  been  almost  wholly  destroyed  by  fire,  with  no  insurance  to  re- 
pair the  broken  fortunes  of  its  citizens,  and  the  present  capital  has 
suffered  not  only  from  fire,  but  from  the  more  appalling  disasters  of 
flood.  Mercantile  embarrassments  and  disaster,  with  extreme  de- 
preciation of  property,  were  superadded  to  the  ruin  wrought  by  flood 
and  fire. 

There  are  shadows  in  the  picture  like  all  of  this  world's  experience; 
but  in  disaster  and  distress,  Saxon  and  Celtic  energy  vindicated  its 
claim  to  supremacy  over  all  the  obstacles  of  accident  and  of  nature. 
The  winter  of  our  discontent  has  been  exchanged  for  glorious  sum- 
mer, and  a  stable  edifice  of  prosperity  has  been  reared  upon  the  ruins 
of  our  shattered  fortunes.  No  more  invincible  perseverance  has  ever 
been  manifested  by  any  community  under  disheartening  circum- 
stances than  by  that  of  Sacramento,  and  her  citizens  are  at  last 
sharing  with  those  of  other  cities  a  prosperity  beyond  that  of  any 
former  period,  and  rejoicing  in  the  certainty  of  a  bright  future. 

For  the  first  year  of  our  California  experience,  those  of  us  who 
were  here,  felt  many  longings  for  the  old  homes  and  friends  we  had 
left  beyond  the  mountains;  an  intense  desire  for  some  rapid  and 
du^ect  communication  with  the  Eastern  States,  pervaded  the  mass 
of  the  population.  It  was  never  absent  from  our  thoughts  by  day, 
or  from  our  dreams  by  night.  The  lack  of  it  induced  many  to  bid  a 
reluctant  farewell  to  the  sunny  skies  and  attractive  scenes  of  Cali- 
fornia, and  seek  their  former  homes  east  of  the  mountains. 

Our  only  communication  with  the  East  in  those  days  was  the 
Panama  steamer,  first  occasional,  then  monthly.  The  journey  over- 
land consumed  months,  and  a  telegraph  or  railway  during  the  present 
generation  was  looked  upon  as  chimerical.    Installments  of  news 


HENRY  HUNTLY  HAIGHT.  671 

came  once  a  montli  in  the  shape  of  letters,  and  Eastern  papers,  forty 
days  old,  which  were  eagerly  purchased  at  fabulous  prices. 

In  the  winter  of  1849-50,  the  streets  of  San  Francisco  were 
thronged  with  miners  driven  there  for  shelter  from  the  inclemency 
of  the  season.  The  prevailing  style  of  dress  was  a  flannel  shirt  in 
lieu  of  a  coat,  and  in  addition  to  the  ordinaiy  nether  garments  a  pair 
of  long  boots,  purchased  at  the  moderate  price  of  six  ounces,  or 
ninety-six  dollars,  in  gold  dust.  Most  of  the  large  rooms  in  the  city 
were  used  as  gambling  saloons,  with  the  accessories  of  bands  of 
music  and  well-stocked  bars.  Here,  day  after  day,  were  to  be  seen 
dense  crowds  of  men  of  all  nationalities  and  races,  bending  in  ab- 
sorbed attention  over  the  gaming  table,  ignoring  all  distinctions  of 
race  or  color  in  the  excitement  of  iDlay.  Comparatively  few  were 
without  weapons,  and  yet  the  number  of  homicides  was  relatively 
small.  The  sight  of  a  lady  was  sufficiently  rare  to  cause  a  street 
full  of  men  to  stop  and  turn  to  look  at  one  passing. 

The  advent  of  spring  dispersed  the  crowds  of  miners  throughout 
the  mountains,  and  produced  a  stagnation  for  the  time  in  San  Fran- 
cisco. I  must  not  weary  your  patience  by  dwelling  upon  the  scenes 
of  the  past  so  familiar  in  memory  to  many  of  you.  Suffice  it  to  say, 
the  i)ublic  gaming-house  was  soon  succeeded  by  the  school-house, 
the  hospital,  and  the  sanctuary.  The  common  law  and  a  code  of 
well  considered  statutes  superseded  the  vague,  uncertain,  and  strange 
rules  of  Mexican  and  civil  law,  and  Courts  organized  in  accordance 
with  American  usages  took  the  place  of  the  unfamiliar  and  irregnilar 
judicial  administration  of  Courts  of  first  instance. 

One  thing  must  be  said  in  honor  of  our  people,  and  it  is  but 
justice  to  say  it:  no  more  liberal,  even  lavish,  charities  ever  character- 
ised any  community  than  those  of  the  people  of  this  State.  The 
direction  then  given  to  benevolent  impulses  will  never  cease  to  be 
felt.  It  has  conferred  lasting  honor  upon  our  State  and  reflected 
credit  upon  human  nature.  It  was  the  offspring  of  circumstances. 
Men  came  here  strangers,  without  families  and  homes.  There  was 
a  present  feeling  of  mutual  dependence.  Wealth,  too,  was  easily 
acquired,  and  as  a  consequence  lightly  esteemed.  Open-handed 
charity  was  the  custom,  and  the  people  were  educated  to  give  at  any 
time  to  any  worthy  object.  Hence  the  benefactions  of  which  Cali- 
fornia has  been  j)rolific,  and  which  are  known  to  the  world,  and 
hence  the  facihty  with  which  money  can  be  obtained  among  us  for 
any  v/orthy  or  laudable  purpose. 

California  in  the  early  days  was  known  to  possess  mineral  wealth, 
and  this  was  thought  to  be  her  only  attraction,  aside  from  climate. 
The  general  judgment  was  that  the  country  was  worthless  for  agri- 
culture. The  long  drought  of  summer  was  thought  to  render  profit- 
able husbandly  impossible.  On  approaching  her  shores,  we  were 
told  that  the  earth  became  so  parched  with  drought  in  the  dry 
season  that  it  was  rent  with  fissures,  which  in  some  districts  ren- 
dered journeying  unsafe.  Trees,  it  was  thought,  would  perish  in 
summer  from  lack  of  moisture. 

Such  was  California  in  the  past,  with  neither  schools,  hospitals, 


672  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

or  churches,  with  few  public  journals,  with  no  agriculture,  no  fire- 
sides or  children,  no  settled  public  sentiment,  no  railways  or  tele- 
graphs, no  ship-yards,  wharves,  or  docks,  no  public  buildings,  no 
manufactures,  and  no  communication  with  the  East  except  by  three 
small  steamships,  the  germ  of  our  present  steam  marine. 

The  country,  however,  was  here,  with  its  cloudless  sky  and  its 
healthful  air,  its  fruitful  soil,  its  noble  harbor  and  bay,  and  its  water- 
courses opening  access  to  the  two  great  inland  valleys:  and  the 
pioneers  were  here,  with  faith  in  its  future,  with  fixedness  of  pur- 
pose, with  large  hearts  and  stalwart  arms. 

This  was  our  past — what  is  our  present?  But  little  more  than 
twenty  years  have  gone,  and  what  has  been  accomplished? 

Look  around  you,  and  see  these  philanthropic  and  benevolent  in- 
stitutions which  now  constitute  your  highest  praise.  Sanctuaries 
representing  every  form  of  religious  belief — Gentile  and  Hebrew, 
Protestant  and  Catholic.  A  Public  School  system,  well  organized 
and  endowed,  growing  every  year  in  efficiency,  placing  instruction 
within  reach  of  all.  A  University,  furnished  with  ample  means  for 
growth,  in  addition  to  private  institutions  of  learning.  Hospitals, 
private  and  public.  Asylums  for  the  Insane,  for  the  Deaf,  Dumb, 
and  Blind,  and  for  the  Orphan.  Benevolent  associations  to  relieve 
the  wants  of  the  distressed  and  suffering,  of  every  creed  and  nation- 
ality. A  public  press,  which  for  enterprise  and  devotion  to  the 
public  interests,  is  certainly  not  inferior  to  that  of  any  Eastern  State. 
Thousands  of  comfortable  homes,  in  the  best  sense  of  the  word,  with 
troops  of  rosy-cheeked  children.  A  sound  and  discriminating  pub- 
lic sentiment.  A  system  of  interior  railways,  well  advanced  towards 
completion,  which  will  soon  render  the  most  distant  jDarts  of  the 
State  accessible.  Spacious  and  elegant  ferry  and  river  steamers.  A 
well  organized  citizen  soldiery,  as  a  reliance  against  attack  from 
without  or  lawlessness  within.  Telegraphic  communication  between 
the  commercial  centre  and  every  considerable  town  in  this  State,  and 
the  States  north  and  east.  Ship-yards  and  dry-docks,  foundries  and 
factories — lines  of  steamship,  north,  west,  and  south — public  build- 
ings for  the  criminal  and  the  unfortunate.  A  State  Capitol,  nearly 
completed,  which  for  solidity,  spaciousness,  and  architectural  ele- 
gance, has  few  equals  on  the  Continent.  These  are  but  a  part  of 
our  present.  To  present  a  complete  statement  within  the  short 
compass  of  an  address  would  be  impossible;  but  there  are  two  things 
more  to  be  noticed.  Agriculture,  not  mining,  is  now  the  basis  of 
our  prosperity,  the  sinews  of  our  commerce  and  the  source  of  our 
wealth.  The  fame  of  our  gold  is  eclipsed  by  that  of  our  wheat. 
Agriculture  is  daily  becoming  a  greater  interest,  and  gold  mining 
relatively,  if  not  absolutely,  less.  Breadstuffs,  wool,  wine,  and  silk, 
seem  now  developing  into  the  great  industries  of  our  State,  but  our 
agriculture  will  naturally  be  diversified  and  profitable  beyond  what 
would  be  possible  elsewhere,  owing  to  the  peculiarities  of  our 
climate. 

The  other  feature  of  our  present  is  the  great  Continental  Railroad, 
the  completion  of  which  we  are  met  to  celebrate  to-day.     If  any  one 


i 


HENRY  HUNTLY  HAIGHT.  673 

had  asserted  six  years  ago  that  to-day  would  find  us  rejoicing  over 
a  completed  Pacific  Railway,  he  would  have  been  ridiculed  as  an  idle 
dreamer.  It  is  due  to  candor  and  truth  to  say,  that  even  after  the 
large  grants  made  by  Congi'ess,  the  number  of  those  who  regarded 
the  enterprise  as  spurious,  and  as  nothing  more  than  a  Dutch  Flat 
turnpike,  probably  exceeded  the  number  of  those  who  expected  to 
witness  its  completion.  It  is  unnecessary  to  give  a  history  of  a  work 
with  which  you  are  all  so  familiar.  Many  of  you  recollect  that  not 
far  from  this  place,  in  the  month  of  January,  1863,  the  first  ground 
Vv^as  broken  in  the  constiTiction  of  the  Pacific  Railroad,  by  the  then 
Governor  of  the  State,  now  the  President  of  the  corporation.  The 
enterjorise  encountered  some  opposition,  which  has  probably  retarded 
by  a  twelvemonth  the  completion  of  the  work.  I  am  not  here  to 
sound  tha  praises  of  individuals  or  of  communities,  but  it  is  simple 
justice  to  say  that  the  men  who  projected  and  successfully  executed 
this  gigantic  undertaking  have  exhibited  a  degi-ee  of  foresight,  of 
industry,  sagacity,  and  business  capability,  which  merits  high  praise. 

I  say  this  the  more  freely  because  it  is  well  known  that  I  have 
never  looked  with  approbation  upon  the  loan  of  State  funds  or  credit, 
or  the  gift  of  State  property  to  any  corporation  of  this  character. 
The  people  will  doubtless  oppose  any  such  polic}^  in  the  future  as 
they  have  in  the  past. 

It  is  a  question  of  low  taxes  and  exemption  from  debt  on  one 
hand,  and  a  burdensome  debt  and  high  taxation  on  the  other.  All 
the  railroads  which  are  required  will  be  built  by  private  enterprise, 
without  loading  the  State  with  an  incubus  of  debt,  crippling  its 
finances  for  half  a  century,  and  furnishing  a  prolific  source  of  cor- 
iniption.  If  we  expect  to  derive  benefit  from  a  Pacific  railroad  by  the 
infiux  of  population,  we  should  be  able  to  point  immigrants  to  a 
State  free  from  debt,  where  the  surplus  earnings  of  the  industrial 
and  mercantile  classes  are  not  all  absorbed  by  the  tax-gatherer. 

While,  too,  we  should  be  willing  to  be  just  to  all,  we  need  not 
forget  that  most  powerful  private  corporations  have  some  interests 
in  conflict  with  those  of  the  public,  and  that  they  are  justly  regarded 
with  some  jealousy. 

To  return,  however,  from  this  digression:  It  cannot  be  otherwise 
than  a  source  of  just  pride  to  the  citizens  of  Sacramento,  that  what- 
ever credit  attaches  to  any  community  in  the  State  for  the  conception 
and  execution  of  this  gi^eat  enterprise,  belongs  rightfully  to  them.  I 
say  this  not  to  utter  any  implied  censure  upon  other  communities  on 
this  day  of  festivity  and  rejoicing,  but  it  is  said  as  the  simple  truth. 
The  men  who  conceived  the  project  and  carried  it  through  to  suc- 
cess are  all  citizens  of  Sacramento,  and  the  fact  cannot  be  othei*wise 
than  gratifying  to  her  people. 

It  was  an  arduous  undertaking  from  first  to  last.  The  progress, 
at  the  outset,  was  slow  through  the  foot-hills  and  up  the  mountain 
slopes  of  the  Sierras.  Hills  were  cut  through,  canons  bridged,  until 
after  about  four  years  of  labor  the  iron  track  reached  the  solid  granite 
of  the  summit.  A  tunnel  of  1,650  feet  through  granite  rock,  in- 
volved enormous  expense  and  labor,  and  caused  a  delay  of  a  year. 

43 


674  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

The  mountain  was  finally  pierced,  and  the  iron  track  started  but 
little  more  than  a  twelvemonth  ago  for  its  race  toward  the  Eocky 
Mountains.  That  the  rapidity  of  its  construction  since  that  time  has 
been  a  marvel,  and  that  all  anticipations  have  been  exceeded,  is 
notorious. 

AVe  stand  here  to-day  to  rejoice  not  only  over  the  completion  of 
this  great  thoroughfare  of  commerce,  but  to  rejoice  still  more  with 
devout  thanksgiving  over  a  prosperity  not  exceeded,  if  equalled,  in 
any  community  on  the  globe.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  there  is  no  State 
or  country  where  more  elements  of  substantial  prosperity  exist,  where 
greater  contentment  perv^ails,  where  labor  is  so  well  rewarded,  where 
wealth  is  so  generally  diffused,  where  a  sounder  currency  is  to  be 
found,  and  where  climate  and  other  causes  are  more  promotive  of 
the  health  and  happiness  of  all  classes. 

I  have  thus,  in  these  discursive  remarks,  glanced  briefly  at  the 
past  and  present  of  California.  What  shall  be  said  of  her  future? 
Lift  your  eyes  and  expand  your  conceptions  to  take  in  the  magnitude 
of  her  destiny.  An  empire  in  area,  presenting  advantages  and  attrac- 
tions to  the  people  of  the  Eastern  States  and  Europe  far  beyond  those 
presented  by  any  other  State  or  Territory,  who  will  set  limits  to  her 
progress,  or  paint  in  fitting  colors  the  splendor  of  her  future  ? 

When  we  reflect  upon  what  has  transpired  during  the  twenty 
years  that  are  past,  isolated  as  the  State  has  been,  what  will  be  her 
progress  during  the  twenty  years  that  are  to  come  ?  Extrinsic  causes, 
of  course,  may  influence  our  destiny  for  good  or  evil.  Mismanage- 
ment at  home  or  at  Washington,  profligate  public  expenditure, 
foreign  war,  and  unwise  legislation,  famine  and  pestilence,  may,  at 
times,  retard  our  progress,  but  if  the  people  of  California  are  true 
to  themselves,  this  State  is  destined  to  a  high  position,  not  only 
among  her  sister  States,  but  among  the  commonwealths  of  the  world. 

AVhat  is  to  be  her  future  in  the  useful  arts,  with  the  popular 
intellect  trained  and  developed  by  a  complete  sj^stem  of  general  edu- 
cation; in  the  fine  arts,  when  the  exquisite  tints  of  her  iand>scapes 
and  sky,  and  the  stupendous  scenery  of  her  mountains  are  transferred 
in  glowing  colors  to  the  canvas,  and  the  sculptor's  genius  chisels  into 
forms  of  beauty  the  marble  of  her  quarries;  in  commerce,  when  trade 
is  freed  from  its  shackles;  when  her  ships  visit  every  shore,  and  her 
merchant  princes  control  the  commerce  of  this  great  ocean  and  the 
populous  countries  upon  its  border;  in  manufactures,  when  our  silk 
and  woolen  goods,  by  their  superior  quality,  displace  the  fabrics  of 
older  nations;  in  agriculture,  when  our  wine  and  wheat  are  as  eagerly 
sought  after  as  our  gold  and  silver;  in  science  and  literature,  when 
institutions  of  learning,  of  the  first  order,  afibrd  every  facility,  and 
accumulated  wealth  secures  leisure  for  scientific  and  literary  pursuits. 

In  the  answer  to  these  questions,  we  might  be  charged  by  our 
Eastern  brethren  with .  blind  partiality  aud  exaggeration.  We  are 
content  to  leave  the  answer  to  time. 

The  day  is  at  hand  when  a  more  splendid  civilization  than  any 
which  has  preceded  it,  will  arise  upon  these  distant  shores.  A  vast 
population  will  pour  into  this  Canaan  of  the  new  world.     Already 


HEXRY  HUNTLY  HAIGHT.  675 

we  hear  the  hum  of  preparation  in  every  quarter:  akeady  we  listen 
to  the  tread  of  the  advancing  hosts.  From  the  north,  east,  and  south, 
from  the  lakes  to  the  gulf,  the  swelling  tide  of  population  will  gather 
volume,  and  pour  in  a  mighty  tide  across  the  Continent,  bringing  to 
us  the  youth,  the  enterprise  and  energy  of  the  older  countries  in 
search  of  adventure,  of  freedom,  and  of  riches  on  the  shores  of  the 
Pacific.  Tourists  will  be  attracted  by  the  most  sublime  scenery  on 
the  Continent,  and  thousands  will  come  to  repair  physical  consti- 
tutions racked  by  the  extremes  of  climate,  the  inclement  aii%  and  the 
miasma  of  the  States  east  of  the  mountains. 

These  words  may  seem  boastful  to  our  brethren  at  the  East,  but 
we  know  whereof  v/e  speak,  and  in  simple  truthfulness  can  say  no 
less.  One  reminiscence  more  before  I  close.  The  14th  day  of  this 
month  terminates  the  first  century  of  the  occupancy  of  this  State 
by  the  white  race.  One  hundred  years  ago,  on  that  day,  the  first 
settlement  of  white  men  was  made  within  the  borders  of  California. 
A  party  of  immigrants  then  arrived,  not  in  a  luxurious  passenger 
car,  whirled  along  the  dizzy  heights  and  profound  gulfs  of  the  Sierras 
by  a  ponderous  engine,  waking  the  echoes  of  the  mountains  with  its 
roar  and  rattle,  but  led  by  a  Franciscan  friar,  not  in  quest  of  gold  or 
ofiice,  or  of  a  more  comfortable  home,  but  stimulated  by  religious 
zeal,  and  bearing  the  standard  of  the  cross.  After  a  laborious  and 
painful  journey  overland  through  Mexico,  Father  Juan  Crespi  arrived 
at  San  Diego,  on  the  14th  day  of  May,  1769.  F'ather  Junij)ero  Serra 
followed,  arriving  on  the  1st  day  of  July,  of  the  same  year. 

It  seems  singularly  appropriate  to  signalize  the  centennial  anni- 
versaiy  of  the  settlement  of  California  by  the  completion  of  this 
crowning  work  of  Saxon  civilization,  which  links  together  in  iron 
bonds  the  two  great  oceans  of  the  world,  and  carries  California  at 
one  bound  into  the  centre  of  the  great  family  of  nations. 

If,  after  the  lapse  of  this  hundred  years,  the  good  friar  could 
awake  from  his  slumber  and  revisit  the  scenes  of  his  self-denying 
labors,  with  what  speechless  amazement  would  he  gaze  upon  the 
transformation  wrought  on  these  shores  since  his  day !  It  is  doubt- 
fid,  however,  whether  the  changes  of  the  past  hundred  years, 
amazing  as  they  have  been,  are  more  wonderful  than  those  that  will 
occur  within  the  hundred  years  to  come.  Where  is  the  fancy  ad- 
venturous enough  to  conceive  the  changes  to  occur  before  the  cease- 
less course  of  time  brings  the  second  centennial  anniversary  of  the 
settlement  of  California? 

In  conclusion,  however,  some  things  must  be  borne  in  mind,  if 
we  expect  that  prosperity  which  seems  to  gild  with  its  rainbow  of 
promise  the  horizon  of  our  future. 

Railwaj^s  and  telegraphs  are  potent  civilizers,  but  these  alone  will 
not  constitute  or  conserve  any  State — much  less  a  free  State.  Cor- 
ruption and  vice  can  travel  on  railways  with  as  much  ease  as  in  stage 
coaches.  California  may  have  all  the  facilities  of  travel  and  inter- 
course, and  its  people  accumulate  wealth  bej^ond  the  dream  of 
avarice,  and  yet  be  miserably  poor  in  all  the  higher  elements  of  solid 
and  endui'ing  happiness.     What  the  moral  character  of  the  future 


676  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

population  of  this  State  is  to  be,  depends  largely  upon  the  genera- 
tion which  is  living  to-day. 

When  we  contemplate  the  magnitude  of  the  destiny  in  store  for 
our  noble  State,  let  us  realize  that  we  must  ourselves  furnish  to  those 
who  are  to  come  after  us  that  lofty  example  which  we  wish  them  to 
follow.  "We  must  set  our  faces  like  a  flint  against  corruption  in  high 
places  as  in  low  ones — in  legislative  halls  and  primary  conventions. 
We  must  make  no  compromise  with  gilded  dishonesty.  We  must 
refuse  to  recognize  tw^o  codes  of  morals,  one  for  private  and  a  low^er 
one  for  political  affairs. 

Above  all,  we  must  recollect  that  the  only  basis  of  morality  is 
religion;  that  no  people  who  are  unmindful  of  their  obligations  to 
their  Creator  can  permanent^  prosper;  that  no  amount  of  material 
wealth  can  compensate  for  the  decay  of  public  and  private  virtue. 
And  whatever  our  religious  convictions  may  be,  or  whatever  forms 
of  worship  or  tenets  of  faith  our  judgments  approve,  while  we  obey 
the  calls  of  patriotism  and  render  unto  Csesar  the  things  that  are 
Caesar's,  let  us  be  careful  to  render  unto  God  the  things  that  are 
God's. 


'•^  or  Taa'** 


(^y?xtn^^    wyi-viA^pL. 


^/ 


DELAZON  SMITH.* 


THE  progenitors  of  Delazon  Smith  were  among  the  very 
earliest  settlers  of  Xew  England.  Capt.  Jonathan 
Smith,  the  grandfather  of  Delazon — as  was  his  father — 
was  born  in  the  colony  of  Rhode  Island.  Capt.  Smith 
was  commissioned  a  captain  in  the  war  of  the  Revolution, 
and  performed  signal  and  important  services  from  the 
inception  of  the  war  at  Bunker's  Hill  until  the  final  vic- 
tory at  Yorktown.  From  the  memoir  published  of  the 
late  Rev.  Stephen  R.  Smith,  (who  was  the  nephew  of 
Capt.  Smith)  we  make  the  following  quotation : 

My  father's  family,  or  rather  that  of  my  grandfather  on  my 
mother's  side,  was,  by  intermarriage  and  common  ancestry,  intimately 
connected  with  several  ©f  the  prominent  families  of  the  State  of 
Hhode  Island.  The  Hopkinses,  Wilkeiisons,  and  Harrises,  and 
others  in  the  vicinity  of  Providence,  were  near  relations;  among  these 
the  Stephen  Hopkins  whose  name  apjDears  among  the  signers  of  the 
Declaration  of  Independence,  I  have  always  understood,  was  cousin- 
german  of  my  grandfather.  The  children  of  my  grandfather,  John 
Smith,  of  Scituate,  Rhode  Island,  were  six  sons  and  one  daughter, 
namely,  Richard,  Joseph,  Jonathan,  Oziel,  Thomas,  Hope,  and  Sarah. 
The  sons  were  in  their  several  spheres  distinguished  for  their  devotion 
to  the  cause  of  national  freedom.  Richard,  the  eldest,  was  a  sub- 
altern in  one  of  the  New  England  regiments,  during  one  or  two  of 
the  campaigns  of  what  was  known  as  the  French  War,  and  which 
terminated  in  the  capture  of  Quebec  and  the  cession  of  Canada  to 
Great  Britain.  Josejjh,  though  never  in  the  regular  service,  was  one 
of  those  Green  Mountam  hoys  who  stormed  the  breastworks  at  the 
battle  of  Bennington;  while  his  son,  a  lad  of  only  fifteen  years, 
fought  in  the  second  battle  on  the  same  day.  Jonathan,  (the  grand- 
father of  Delazon)  with  a  lieutenant's  commission,  on  hearing  of  the 

*  For  explanatory  note,  see  Preface, 


678  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN  OF    THE   PACIFIC. 

battle  of  Lexington,  marched  immediately  with  his  company  to  Cam- 
bridge; was  several  years  in  the  Continental  service,  and  lived  till  a 
very  advanced  age  in  the  enjoyment  of  his  country's  bounty.  Thomas 
declined  a  commission,  and  entered  the  service  as  a  volunteer.  He 
was  killed  at  the  bridge  in  Springfield,  New  Jersey.  Captain  Olney, 
of  the  Ehode  Island  line,  has  given  in  his  own  memoir,  an  interesting 
account  of  his  feelings  and  fears  when  left  to  guard  the  bridge, 
where  he  lost  his  life.  Oziel,  though  devoted  to  the  cause  of  liberty, 
was  emphatically  a  man  of  peace,  and  though  occasionally  called  out 
for  short  periods  of  service,  it  is  not  known  that  he  ever  remained 
longer  than  immediate  duty  required. 

The  maternal  grandfather  of  Delazon  was  Joseph 
Briggs,  Esq.,  a  native  of  Massachusetts,  and  at  the  time 
of  the  Revolution,  a  citizen  of  Vermont.  He  was  also  a 
captain  in  the  War  of  Independence:  he  particularly  dis- 
tinguished himself  in  the  battles  of  Bunker's  Hill,  Benning- 
ton, Saratoga,  and  Monmouth,  and  was  present  at  the 
surrender  of  Burgoyne.  On  one  occasion,  in  the  midst 
of  the  battle,  his  superior  officer,  having  deserted  the 
American  standard,  and  sought  protection  under  the 
British  banner,  Captain  Briggs  moved  gallantly  forward 
to  the  command,  rallied  the  dismayed  and  panic-stricken 
men,  charged  the  enemy  boldly  and  courageously  and 
turned  the  tide  of  battle,  achieving  a  victory  at  a  moment 
when  defeat  seemed  inevitable. 

At  the  close  of  the  war,  he  returned  to  his  home  and 
resumed  the  peaceful  pursuits  of  private  life,  covered  with 
honorable  scars,  and  content  with  the  consciousness  of 
duties  well  performed,  and  rejoicing  in  an  honorable  peace 
with  its  blessings,  and  the  unquestioned  freedom  of  his 
country.  Thus  could  the  young  Senator  point  with  pride 
to  his  ancestry  and  to  his  country's  record,  which  estab- 
lishes the  fact  that  he  descended  from  ^^figUing  stock:'" 
indeed,  every  battle-field  where  a  foreign  foe  has  been  met 
and  resisted  by  American  arms  has  been  wet  with  the 
blood  of  his  kindred.  One  brother  offered  himself  and 
was  sacrificed  upon  the  altar  of  his  country  during  the 
war  with  Mexico. 

Delazon  Smith  was  the  fourth  son  of  Archibald  Smith, 
and  was  born  in  the  village  of  New  Berlin,  in  the  county 
of  Chenango,  State  of  New  York,  on  the  5th  of  October, 
1816.     His  father  was  an  humble  mechanic,  in  moderate 


DELAZON   SMITH.  679 

circumstances.  His  mother  was  a  woman  of  extraordinary 
intellectual  powers,  and  of  remarkable  excellence  of 
character  and  disposition,  universally  esteemed  as  a 
womanly  perfection  of  nature's  noblest  handiwork.  She 
died  in  the  year  1825,  leaving  five  surviving  sons  of  ten- 
der age,  to  rely  at  the  very  commencement  of  their  career 
mainly  upon  their  own  individual,  native,  inherent  energy, 
for  success  in  the  great  battle  of  life. 

In  the  year  1831,  when  but  fifteen  years  of  age,  Delazon, 
provided  with  but  a  small  bundle  of  clothing  which  he 
carried  under  his  arm,  and  almost  penniless,  started  for 
the  ^'  West."  After  a  temporary  residence  of  two  or  three 
years  in  Western  New  York  with  an  elder  brother  who 
had  preceded  him,  and  where  he  sought,  and  to  a  limited 
extent  obtained,  the  facilities  of  an  education,  he  renewed 
his  journey  westward.  Having  heard  that  there  was  a 
manual  labor  college  in  Ohio,  where  indigent  young  men 
could  obtain  an  education  and  meet  their  current  expenses 
by  the  daily  labor  of  their  hands,  young  Smith  lost  no 
time  in  making  his  way  to  that  institution.  He  arrived 
at  Oberlin  in  the  spring  of  1834,  where  he  remained  two 
years  as  a  student  of  the  "  Collegiate  Institute."  Then 
he  withdrew  because  of  his  refusal  to  acquiesce  in  the 
practice  which  then  prevailed  of  enticing  away,  harboring, 
secreting,  and  running  off  North  slaves  from  the  Southern 
States. 

On  leaving  Oberlin,  the  young  student  repaired  to 
the  city  of  Cleaveland,  where  he  published  a  large  edition 
of  a  small  work  entitled,  ^'  Oherlin  Unmasked;''  and  it  is  a 
significant  and  somewhat  remarkable  fact,  that  even  at 
that  early  period  in  the  history  of  anti-slavery  agitation, 
he  actually  depicted,  as  w^ith  the  ken  of  a  prophet,  the 
state  of  things  as  they  existed  at  a  later  period.  Having 
arrived  in  Cleaveland,  and  resolved  upon  the  study  and 
practice  of  the  law,  Mr.  Smith  at  once  entered  his  name 
as  a  student  in  the  ofl&ce  of  a  prominent  attorney  of  that 
city.  In  the  meantime,  he  contributed  much  to  the 
columns  of  the  newspaper  press^  and  frequently  became 
involved  in  controversies  on  the  subject  of  religion  and 
politics. 


G80  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE  PACIFIC. 

In  the  spring  of  1838,  Mr.  Smith  received  a  flattering 
invitation  from  an  association  of  appreciative  gentlemen 
to  return  to  the  city  of  Rochester,  in  his  native  State,  for 
the  purpose  of  establishing  a  newspaper,  to  be  called  the 
Neio  York  Watchman.  This  position  he  accepted,  and 
edited  the  Watchumn  for  a  period  of  two  years,  in  the 
meanwhile  continuing  the  study  of  the  law. 

In  the  memorable  campaign  of  1840,  Mr.  Smith  edited 
and  published  a  very  able,  spirited,  and  influential  Demo- 
cratic paper,  entitled  the  True  Jeffersonian.  His  maiden 
political  speeches,  delivered  to  large  and  promiscuous 
audiences,  were  made  in  the  Presidential  contest  of  1836; 
and  though  he  had  taken  an  active  and  prominent  part 
in  the  New  York  State  elections  of  1838,  yet  it  was  not 
until  the  campaign  of  1840  that  his  extraordinary  abil- 
ities as  a  political  or  '^  stump"  speaker  became  generally 
known.  During  that  excited  and  bitter  contest,  under 
the  banner  of  Van  Buren  and  Johnson,  he  did  more  than 
a  soldier's  duty:  he  performed  herculean  labor.  In  addi- 
tion to  sustaining  his  True  Jeffersonian  with  marked  and 
acknowledged  ability,  he  canvassed  with  great  success 
the  States  of  New  York,  Ohio,  and  Pennsylvania. 

After  the  close  of  the  campaign  of  1840,  Mr.  Smith 
established  a  daily  paper  called  the  Western  World,  but 
owing  in  part  to  the  utter  prostration  of  the  Democratic 
party,  he  discou tinned  it,  and  soon  after,  in  the  fall  of 
1841,  returned  to  Ohio,  and  located  in  the  city  of  Day- 
ton, w^here  he  at  once  established  a  Democratic  jom^nal, 
which  he  named  Western  Umpire,  which  came  to  be  the 
leading  Democratic  paper  in  that  section  of  the  State. 

When  the  then  Chief  Magistrate  of  the  nation  vetoed 
the  Congressional  bills  re-chartering  a  national  bank, 
etc.,  and  after  Mr.  Tyler's  policy  had  become  essentially 
Democratic,  Mr.  Smith,  as  the  editor  of  the  Empire,  and 
as  a  Democratic  orator,  gave  to  the  executive  and  hig 
administration  a  prompt,  generous,  and  able  support. 

In  1843,  a  difference  of  opinion  arose  between  Mr. 
Smith  and  some  of  his  partisan  friends  and  associates,  in 
reference  to  the  propriety  and  policy  of  his  defence  and 
support  of  certain  measures  of  Mr.  Tyler's  administra- 


DELAZON    S^nTH.  681 

tion,  which  eventuated  in  Mr.  Smith's  voluntarily  with- 
drawing himself  from  the  editorial  control  of  the  Empire. 
Soon  afterwards,  however,  he  established  another  paper, 
called  the  Miamian^  in  the  same  city. 

Prior  to  the  Baltimore  Convention  of  1844,  Mr.  Smith 
declared  his  preference  for  and  hoisted  the  name  of  Gen. 
Lewis  Cass  for  the  Presidency,  in  the  meantime  insisting 
that  President  Tyler's  overtures  to  be  readmitted  into 
the  Democratic  party  should  be  generously  and  cordially 
met,  and  the  leading  measures  of  his  administration,  be- 
ing substantially  Democratic,  sustained  and  defended,  his 
honest  friends  fcllowshipped,  and  his  Democratic  ap- 
pointees protected  and  preserved  in  position. 

When  Mr.  Polk  was  chosen  as  the  compromise 
standard-bearer  of  the  Democratic  party,  Mr.  Smith 
placed  his  name  at  the  head  of  his  paper,  and  was  every- 
where found  energetically,  eloquently,  and  gallantly  bat- 
tling, under  the  motto  of  ''  Oregon  and  Texas,"  for  Polk 
and  Dallas. 

At  the  close  of  the  campaign  of  1844,  President 
Tyler  appointed  Mr.  Smith  as  Special  Commissioner  of 
the  United  States  to  the  Republic  of  Ecuador,  in  South 
America.  In  the  execution  of  this  mission,  Mr.  Smith 
was  clothed  by  his  govermnent  with  full  powers  to  treat 
with  the  government  of  Ecuador.  He  was  especially  in- 
structed to  remain  at  Quito  from  nine  to  twelve  months, 
and  if  at  the  expiration  of  that  period  the  objects  of  his 
mission  had  not  been  accomplished,  or  if  in  his  judgment 
there  was  no  immediate  prospect  of  a  satisfactory  issue, 
he  should  return  to  the  United  States.  Upon  his  arrival 
at  Quito,  Mr.  Smith  found  the  government  to  which  he 
had  been  accredited  embroiled  in  intestine  wars.  After 
having  remained  at  the  capital  of  the  Republic  for  one 
month,  and  exchanged  a  few  letters  with  the  self-con- 
stituted officers  of  the  provisional  government,  and 
ascertaining  the  utter  impossibility  of  accomplishing  the 
objects  of  his  mission,  he  returned  home. 

On  his  return  from  South  America,  in  the  spring  of 
1846,  Mr.  Smith  located  himself  in  what  was  then  the 
territory  of  Iowa,  where  he  purchased  and  settled  upon 


682  REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OP   THE  PACIFIC. 

a  farm,  and  engaged  in  the  labors  of  agriciilturej  associa- 
ting therewith,  to  a  limited  extent,  the  practice  of  the 
law.  In  the  formation  of  the  State  government,  he  took 
a  prominent  and  active  part.  During  his  residence  in 
Iowa,  he  appears  to  have  been  the  especial  favorite  of  the 
Democracy  of  his  (Van  Buren)  county,  for  on  three  several 
occasions  they  presented  his  name  as  their  first  choice  for 
Congress,  and  once  to  a  Democratic  State  convention  as 
their  choice  for  Governor. 

In  the  year  1850,  Congress,  at  the  close  of  the  long 
session,  declared  the  seat  of  Hon.  Wm.  Thompson,  from 
Iowa,  vacant,  it  having  been  contested  by  the  Hon.  Daniel 
F.  Millar.  Understanding  that  no  convention  would  be 
held,  and  that  Mr.  Thompson  would  not  contest  the 
matter  before  the  people,  and  did  not  desire  to  run  for 
an  election  to  fill  the  residue  of  the  term,  the  Democratic 
friends  of  Mr.  Smith  held  a  mass  meeting  and  placed  him 
in  nomination  for  that  position.  Subsequent!}^,  however, 
Mr.  Thompson  resolved  upon  making  the  canvass^  and 
the  result  was  the  election  of  Mr.  Millar,  the  opposition 
candidate. 

During  his  residence  in  Iowa,  Mr.  Smith  was  con- 
stantly on  hand  engaged  in  fighting  the  battles  of  the 
Democracy,  and  with  the  same  zeal,  intrepidity,  and  elo- 
quence which  had  characterized  all  his  previous  efforts  in 
the  advocacy  and  defence  of  his  favorite  principles. 

During  the  Presidential  campaign  of  1848,  he  edited 
with  decided  ability  the  Iowa  Democrat^  in  support  of 
Cass  and  Butler,  the  Democratic  nominees;  and  in  the 
meanwhile  canvassed  upon  the  stump  a  large  portion  of 
the  State,  in  company  with  Gen.  A.  C.  Dodge,  our  late 
Minister  to  Spain,  and  the  late  Chief  Justice  Joseph 
Williams.  Yery  much  of  the  credit  for  having  in  that 
day  placed  the  Territory  of  Iowa  upon  her  feet  as  u  Dem- 
ocratic State  is  eminently  due  to  Mr.  Smith. 

Having  lost  several  members  of  his  family  by  death, 
and  having  suffered  deeply  from  sickness  and  other  mis- 
fortunes during  his  residence  in  Iowa,  Mr.  Smith  resolved 
upon  seeking  health  and  home  and  fortune  by  removing 
still  farther  Westward.     Accordingly,  in  the  spring  of 


DELAZON    SMITH.  683 

1852,  he  set  out  with  his  family  in  an  ox- wagon  for  the 
Territory  of  Oregon,  crossing  the  Plains  and  the  Rocky 
Mountains.  He  was  five  months  making  the  journey  from 
the  Missouri  River  to  the  Dalles  of  the  Columbia.  Himself 
and  family  suffered  severely  for  a  protracted  period  with 
sickness  whilst  on  the  Plains,  but  at  last  arrived  in  safety 
and  health  in  the  Yalley  of  Willamette,  thougli  not  until 
they  had  lost  every  head  of  cattle,  and  in  fact  every  thing 
in  the  shape  of  property  which  they  possessed. 

Undaunted,  and  neither  dismayed  nor  disheartened, 
Mr.  Smith  selected  for  himself  a  land-claim  (under  the 
act  of  Congress  of  1850,  granting  lands  to  all  citizens  who 
should  reside  upon  and  cultivate  the  same  for  a  period  of 
four  consecutive  yearsj  in  the  county  of  Linn,  in  the  heart 
of  the  Valley,  and  soon  thereafter  established  his  family 
there.  Having  thus  provided  a  home,  he  applied  himself 
vigorously  and  unremittingly  to  the  practice  of  the  law, 
devoting  the  proceeds  to  the  cultivation  and  improvement 
of  his  farm,  and  to  securing  the  comforts  and  surrounding 
himself  with  the  elegancies  of  life. 

In  the  spring  of  1854,  the  Democracy  of  Linn  county 
nominated  Mr.  Smith  as  a  candidate  for  the  Legislature, 
and  he  was  elected  by  a  majority  of  upwards  of  two  hun- 
dred. In  the  following  year,  he  was  again  nominated  for 
the  same  position,  and  returned  by  a  majority  of  four 
hundred. 

Upon  the  convening  of  the  Legislature,  he  was  chosen 
Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  receiving  nine- 
tenths  of  the  votes  cast.  In  1856,  he  was  again  renomi- 
nated and  reelected  to  the  Legislature  by  an  increased 
majority,  and  in  the  year  following,  he  was  chosen  one  of 
the  delegates  to  the  convention  to  frame  a  constitution  for 
the  State  government;  and  finall}^,  in  July,  1858,  he  wah 
chosen  one  of  the  first  United  States  Senators  from  tht 
State  of  Oregon,  by  a  four-fifths  vote  of  the  members  of 
the  Legislature  assembled  in  joint  convention. 

Did  the  space  allotted  to  this  hurried  sketch  allow, 
we  should  take  pleasure  in  quoting  briefly  from  some  of 
the  numerous  speeches,  addresses,  and  orations  delivered 
by  Mr.  Smith  on  various  occasions,  and  which  have  been 


68 i  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

published  from  time  to  time,  as  specimens  of  his  style  of 
oratory:  but  a  want  of  space  must  deprive  us  of  this 
pleasure. 

The  most  prominent  characteristics  of  Mr.  Smith  were 
energy,  perseverance,  and  warmth  of  feeling  and  attach- 
ment. Whatever  he  resolved  upon  doing,  he  did  with 
remarkable  energy  and  singleness  of  purpose:  no  impedi- 
ment deterred,  no  adversity  appalled  him :  he  never  flagged 
or  faltered,  nor  would  he  readily  bow  or  bend  to  the  storm ; 
if  he  did,  he  rose  again,  and  not  less  determined  than  ever. 
No  man  was  more  devoted  to  country,  home,  and  friends. 
Unreserved,  frank,  and  candid,  no  one  would  go  further, 
or  sacrifice  or  suffer  more,  to  serve  his  friends.  As  a 
debater,  he  reasoned  inductively  and  analogically:  was 
always  ready,  forcible,  and  elegant;  and  none  who  heard 
him  were  permitted  to  doubt  either  his  patriotism  or  his 
sincerity. 

Mr.  Smith,  in  casting  lots,  drew  the  short  term,  ex- 
piring on  the  fourth  of  March,  1859.  Upon  the  expira- 
tion of  his  brief  term  of  office,  he  returned  to  Oregon, 
and  took  a  prominent  part  in  political  movements  in  that 
State.  He  was  in  good  health  and  spirits,  and  his  friends 
confidently  predicted  for  him  many  years  of  brilliant 
usefulness.  But  Providence  dashed  the  hopes  of  the 
statesman  and  the  expectations  of  his  friends,  and  put  a 
period  to  his  career.  Within  a  week  after  the  result  was 
known  of  the  Presidential  election  of  1860,  Mr.  Smith 
was  taken  suddenly  ill,  and  died  in  a  few  days  thereafter. 
His  widow  still  lives  on  the  family  homestead,  a  large  and 
valuable  farm  in  Linn  county.  Mr.  Smith  was  a  true 
friend  and  faithful  servant  of  the  people  of  Oregon,  by 
whom  his  memory  is  gratefully  cherished. 


STEPHEN  JOHNSON  FIELD 

By  the  ^ditor 


JUDGE  Field  is  the  son  of  the  late  Rev.  David  D.  Field, 
an  eminent  Kew  England  divine.  David  Dudley 
Field,  who  has  been,  for  a  quarter  of  a  century,  one  of 
the  foremost  members  of  the  American  bar;  Cyrus  W. 
Field,  the  projector  of  the  Atlantic  submarine  telegraph; 
Jonathan  Field,  formerly  President  of  the  Massachusetts 
Senate;  and  Rev.  Henry  M.  Field,  editor  of  the  New 
York  Evangelist,  are  all  brothers  of  the  subject  of  this 
sketch. 

Stephen  Johnson  Field  was  born  in  Haddam,  Con- 
necticut, November  4th,  1816.  In  181 8,  his  father  moved 
to  Stockbridge,  Massachusetts,  where  he  resided  until 
1837,  and  from  1851  until  his  death  in  1866.  When 
thirteen  years  of  age,  young  Field  accompanied  a  relative 
to  Greece  and  Asia  Minor,  where  he  remained  for  nearly 
three  years,  studying  the  modern  languages.  Returning 
he  entered  Williams  College  in  the  fall  of  1833,  had  the 
Greek  Oration  in  the  Junior  year,  and  graduated  in  1837 
with  the  Valedictory  Oration,  the  highest  honor  in  his 
class.  In  1838,  he  went  to  ISTew  York  city,  and  entered 
upon  the  study  of  the  law  in  the  office  of  his  brother, 
David  Dudley  Field.  During  this  year,  he  met  with  an 
accident  which  resulted  in  serious  and  permanent  injury 
to  one  of  his  knee-joints,  and  has  ever  since  caused  a 
slight  lameness. 


686  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

After  being  admitted  to  the  bar,  he  became  the  part- 
ner of  his  brother,  with  whom  he  remained  until  June, 
1848,  when  he  went  to  Europe,  and  remained  abroad 
until  the  fall  of  the  next  year.  On  his  return,  he  was 
carried  by  the  tide  setting  for  California  to  that  State, 
where  he  arrived  on  the  28th  of  December,  1849.  Among 
his  fellow-passengers  were  Gov.  Purdy  and  Gregory  Yale, 
Esq. 

Mr.  Field  settled  at  Marysville,  of  which  place  he  was 
one  of  the  earliest  citizens.  ^'He  was  chosen  by  the  first 
settlers  Alcalde,  (under  Mexican  usage)  and  officiated  in 
that  capacity  until  the  organization  of  the  judiciary  of 
the  State — his  decisions  being  final,  and  his  jurisdiction 
extending  over  an  immense,  indeed  an  undefined,  terri- 
tory." Subsequently,  for  many  years,  he  practiced  his 
profession  in  the  various  Courts  of  the  State,  and  was 
engaged  before  the  Supreme  Court  at  nearly  every  term 
of  that  tribunal.  For  several  years  before  his  elevation 
to  the  Supreme  Court  bench,  he  was  generally  regarded 
as  the  first  lawyer  of  Northern  California.  He  also 
represented  Yuba  county  in  the  second  session  of  the 
Legislature,  and  the  State  is  indebted  to  him  for  very 
many  of  the  laws  which  constitute  the  body  of  her  legis- 
lation. 

In  1857,  Mr.  Field  was  elected  one  of  the  Justices 
of  the  Supreme  Court  of  California,  having  received  his 
nomination  from  the  Democratic  party.  His  nomination 
was  endorsed  by  many  leading  newspapers  politically  op- 
posed to  him,  and  his  election  by  a  large  majority  was 
not  only  a  political  triumph  but  a  popular  recognition 
of  those  qualities  which  subsequently  enabled  him  to 
adorn  that  high  station.  After  his  election,  and  before 
the  commencement  of  the  term  for  which  he  was  chosen, 
he  was  appointed  by  Governor  Johnson,  Justice  of  the 
Supreme  Court,  to  fill  the  unexpired  term  of  Judge 
Heydenfeldt,  resigned.  This  appointment,  coming  from 
a  political  opponent,  was  an  endorsement  of  the  popular 
estimation  of  his  high  character.  He  took  his  seat  on 
the  bench  in  October,  1857,  and  in  1859,  upon  the 
resignation  of  Judge  Terry,  became  Chief  Justice  of  the 


STEPHEN  JOHNSON  FIELD.  687 

State.  In  the  latter  year,  he  was  married  at  San  Fran- 
cisco to  Miss  Sue  Y.  Swearingen. 

In  1863,  while  still  discharging  the  duties  of  Chief 
Justice  of  the  State,  Judge  Field,  upon  the  unanimous 
recommendation  of  the  Senators  and  Representatives  in 
Congress  from  the  Pacific  coast,  was  nominated  by  Presi- 
dent Lincoln  and  confirmed  by  the  Senate,  an  Associate 
Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States.  He 
has  ever  since  continued  in  the  active  performance  of  the 
functions  of  this  high  office. 

At  the  bar,  Judge  Field  was  a  most  skillful  opponent. 
He  came  to  the  trial  of  a  cause  thoroughly  master  of  all 
its  details;  then,  with  his  mind  steadily  fixed  upon  its 
principal  points,  he  proceeded  with  coolness,  caution,  and 
boldness;  never  thrown  off*  his  guard;  never  surprised 
by  a  new  proposition;  and  always  developing  strength 
when  the  cause  demanded  it,  he  seldom  failed  to  evolve 
whatever  there  was  in  a  case.  Without  being  what  is 
popularly  called  a  great  speaker,  Judge  Field  argued  his 
cases  with  force  and  eff'ect,  whether  before  a  court  or  jury. 
There  was  a  nervous  strength  and  an  enthusiasm  in  his 
clear-cut,  logical  arguments,  which  seldom  failed  to  con- 
vince. 

Upon  the  bench  Judge  Field  was  equally  distinguished. 
His  leading  characteristic  is  his  clear  comprehension  of 
the  great  principles  of  the  law:  in  all  cases  he  seeks  to 
apply  the  broad  and  general  rules  of  right  and  justice,  and 
in  order  to  do  this,  to  brush  away  the  trifles  and  techni- 
calities by  which  they  may  be  obscured.  This  is  especially 
true  of  his  opinions  in  cases  involving  the  titles  to  land. 
When  carefully  examined,  they  will  be  found  to  embrace 
a  system  of  land  laio,  scattered,  it  is  true,  through  twelve 
volumes  of  the  Reports  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State 
of  California;  sufficiently  comprehensive  to  meet  nearly 
all  questions  arising  in  the  acquisition,  protection,  and 
transmission  of  this  species  of  property.  It  is  undoubt- 
edly owing  to  this  fact  that  his  decisions  have  so  generally 
stood  the  test  of  time,  and  are  now  recognized  as  author- 
ity not  only  in  California,  but  in  all  the  States  of  the 
Pacific. 


688  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Judge  Field  enjoyed  the  intimate  acquaintance  and 
friendship  of  the  late  Judge  Joseph  G.  Baldwin,  who  en- 
tertained for  his  legal  abilities  profound  respect.  Judge 
Baldwin  regarded  with  great  pleasure  and  satisfaction 
Judge  Field's  elevation  to  the  high  place  which  he  now 
holds,  and  in  a  communication  to  the  Sacramento  Unions 
under  date  of  May  6th,  1863,  he  gave  a  brief  history  of 
Judge  Field's  career,  and  discussed  his  character  and 
abilities  as  a  lawyer  and  jurist.  And  he  did  not  hesitate 
to  declare  that,  '^  by  the  appointment  of  Judge  Field  to 
a  seat  on  the  bench  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United 
States,  the  State  of  California  has  been  deprived  of  the 
ablest  jurist  who  ever  presided  over  her  courts." 

Since  his  elevation  to  the  Supreme  Bench  of  the 
United  States,  Judge  Field  has  not  ceased  to  exercise  his 
talents  for  the  benefit  of  his  adopted  State.  As  peculiarly 
owisng  to  his  exertions,  may  be  mentioned  the  final  settle- 
ment of  a  basis  for  land  titles  in  San  Francisco.  It  is 
generally  understood 'that  the  act  of  Congress  confirming 
the  Yan  Ness  Ordinance,  and  the  subsequent  and  final  act 
of  Congress  substantially  confirming  the  decision  of  the 
Circuit  Court  in  the  Pueblo  case,  emanated  from  him. 
His  constant  solicitude  has  been  to  evolve  something  like 
order  from  the  chaotic  condition  of  the  land  titles  in  that 
city,  believing  that  he  could  render  no  more  efficient 
service  to  the  rising  metropolis  of  the  Pacific,  and  con- 
sequently to  the  whole  State,  than  in  conferring  upon  it 
one  of  the  first  essentials  to  the  prosperity  and  financial 
health  of  any  community — certainty  in  the  title  to  the 
lands  upon  which  it  is  built. 


^/? 


j^^H    '«^ 


3.  * 


Sn.&aTed-&T  J  C  E^ittee  froci  a  D^goerreo'.-I^ 


c//r77l<'/}?^^f^UD- 


C  FBOM  CALIF DRj;iA 


JAMES  A.  MCDOUGALL 

^Y    ^ILLIAM    fi.     JR.HODEa 


Vita  sine  Uteris,  mors  est. 

WHEN  intelligence  of  the  death  of  Gen.  McDougall 
reached  California^  not  a  citizen  of  that  State  but 
felt  that  one  of  her  brightest  intellects,  purest  patriots^ 
and  wisest  counselors  had  departed.  The  fame  of  the 
dead  senator  had  penetrated  every  corner  of  that  new 
dominion.  As  a  lawyer,  he  had  been  eminently  success- 
ful; as  a  public  officer,  incorruptible;  as  a  statesman, 
w^isc,  forearmed,  and  magnanimous.  More  learned  than 
Baker,  more  successful  than  Hoge,  and  more  consistent 
than  Pratt,  he  led  that  mighty  phalanx  of  great  West- 
erners who  at  an  early  day  immigrated  into  California, 
and  by  their  united  genius  lifted  her  up  into  the  position 
of  one  of  the  noblest  States  that  adorn  our  confederacy. 
By  their  services,  she  early  attained  her  proudest  charac- 
teristic, the  Umjnre  State  of  the  Pacific ! 

James  A.  McDougall  was  born  in  Albany  county,  in 
the  State  of  New  York,  in  November,  1817,  a-nd  received 
the  rudiments  of  his  education  at  the  Grammar  School 
of  that  place.  At  a  very  early  age,  he  assisted  in  the 
survey  of  the  first  railroad  built  in  the  Slate  of  New 
York — that  connecting  the  two  cities  of  Albany  and 
Schenectady.  His  attention  thus  early  was  directed 
towards  internal  improvements,  particularly  to  railroads, 
U 


690  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

and  some  of  the  most  important  acts  of  his  life  owed 
their  germs  to  this  commencement.  Here,  indeed,  may 
be  seen  the  origin  of  his  advocacy  of  the  Great  Pacific 
Railroad,  to  the  construction  of  which  he  devoted  much 
of  his  time  and  all  of  his  talents:  of  this,  however,  we 
shall  speak  more  at  large  hereafter. 

After  completing  the  survey  of  the  Albany  road,  Mr. 
McDougall  resolved  to  adopt  the  profession  of  law  as  the 
'business  of  his  life,  and  set  about  the  study  with  indus- 
trious alacrity.  He  devoted  all  his  time  to  this  object, 
and  with  characteristic  energy  soon  mastered  the  rudi- 
ments of  the  profession.  Whilst  still  a  mere  boy,  he 
emigrated  to  the  great  West — in  1837 — and  settled  in 
Pike  county,  Illinois.  Here  he  at  once  developed  talents 
of  the  highest  order,  and  rose  with  unprecedented  ra- 
pidity to  the  highest  honors  of  the  forum.  In  1842,  he 
was  elected  Attorney  General  of  Illinois,  and  at  the  con- 
clusion of  his  first  term  of  office  in  1844,  was  again  elected 
to  the  same  position. 

During  his  early  career  in  Illinois,  it  was  his  fortune 
to  meet  and  come  into  friendly  rivalry  at  the  bar  with 
such  men  as  Baker,  Hoge,  and  Pratt.  Nor  is  it  doing 
any  injustice  to  those  distinguished  jurists  to  assert  that 
he  fully  equaled,  if  he  did  not  surpass,  them  all.  Indeed, 
for  varied  literary  as  well  as  legal  lore ;  for  scrupulous 
good  taste  in  all  his  compositions;  for  fiery  eloquence 
and  aptness  of  quotation,  no  citizen  of  Illinois  has  ever 
yet  approached  him. 

From  Illinois,  he  led  an  expedition  of  his  own  form- 
ing, in  1849,  to  the  head  waters  of  the  Rio  del  Norte. 
The  object  of  this  venture  was  primarily,  exploration  of 
the  country,  with  a  view  to  settlement,  and  secondly,  a 
search  for  the  precious  metals. 

The  enchanting  news  from  California  seems  to  have 
taken  entire  possession  of  the  minds  of  some  of  the  ablest 
and  most  adventurous  spirits  of  the  far  West,  and  hence 
the  brilliant  array  of  distinguished  names  that  adorned 
the  early  annals  of  the  Golden  State.  The  results  of  the 
expedition  not  being  satisfactory,  instead  of  returning 
homewards,  the  caravan  turned  its  face  to  the  westward, 


JAMES   A.    MCDOUGALL.  691 

and  started  across  the  deserts  and  hills  of  the  Gila  and 
Colorado  for  the  El  Dorado  of  the  West. 

Soon  after  his  arrival  in  California,  he  settled  in  San 
Francisco,  and  devoted  his  attention  to  the  practice  of 
law.  From  the  first  moment  of  his  appearance  at  the 
bar  in  that  city,  he  became  a  man  of  mark  and  distinc- 
tion. It  was  no  easy  task  to  take  precedence  of  such 
men  as  Tilford,  Randolph,  and  Sloan;  yet  McDougall 
soon  found  himself  an  overmatch  for  them  all,  and  shared 
the  dangerous  honor  of  preeminence  alone  with  Lock- 
wood  of  Indiana.  The  contests  between  these  two  jurists 
of  the  law  were  always  terrific,  and  very  often  extremely 
rough  and  personal.  What  Lockwood  lacked  in  polish, 
he  made  up  in  erudition,  and  what  was  wanting  in 
McDougall's  delivery,  was  fully  compensated  for  in  sar- 
castic humor.  Lockwood  was  ponderous  in  his  blows, 
whilst  his  rival  was  alert  and  watchful.  It  was  the  old 
battle  between  Fitz  James  and  Roderick  Dhu,  between 
David  and  Goliah,  between  rude  strength  and  practiced 
skill.  The  Damascus  blade  generally  triumphed  over  the 
rude  claymore  and  the  tough  bull's  hide.  When  the 
verdict  came,  it  was  received  usually  in  sullen  silence  by 
the  defeated  Hoosier.  The  New  Yorker  smiled,  birt 
said  nothing.  Well  he  knew  that  when  the  appeal  came 
to  the  Supreme  Court,  nothing  could  resist  the  polished 
irony,  nervous  vigor,  and  apt  learning  of  his  luminous 
pen.  Still  the  battle  was  left  undecided  up  to  the  period 
of  Lockwood' s  death.  After  that  event,  it  was  generally 
conceded  that  James  A.  McDougall  stood  at  the  head  of 
the  California  bar.  'No  sooner  had  he  established  his 
right  as  a  leader  than  he  received  the  nomination  of  the 
Democratic  party  for  the  office  of  Attorney  General  of 
the  State.  He  was  triumphantly  elected  to  that  position 
in  1850,  and  served  with  great  distinction.  His  legal 
eminence  soon  led  to  political  preferment,  and  he  was 
chosen  member  of  Congress,  as  a  Representative,  in  1853. 

Previous  to  his  election,  the  question  of  the  con- 
struction of  a  continental  railroad  began  to  exercise  the 
minds  of  the  most  sagacious  politicians  on  both  shores 
of  the  hemisphere.    On  the  western,  McDougall  took  the 


G92  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

lead.  Unquestionably  the  most  scientific  of  the  laymen 
who  advocated  the  measure,  he  soon,  by  his  studies  of 
the  geography  of  the  interior  of  the  continent,  led  even 
the  scientific  corps  who  had  been  detailed  by  the  Federal 
government  to  take  the  initiative  steps  towards  its  con- 
struction. It  soon  became  the  hobby  of  McDougall,  as  it 
had  been  for  many  years  with  Senator  Benton  of  Mis- 
souri. All  sources  of  information  were  explored  by  him 
with  indefatigable  industry,  and  his  first  great  speech  in 
Congress  was  upon  his  favorite  theme.  Before  quitting 
home,  he  delivered  several  powerful  speeches  on  the 
subject,  and  by  his  warm  and  magnetic  eloquence  aroused 
the  leading  minds  of  California  and  Oregon  to  a  just  ap- 
preciation of  the  subject. 

•  Much  has  been  written  to  prove  who  was  the  real 
father  of  the  Pacific  Railroad.  It  matters  but  little  who 
first  suggested  the  general  idea;  but  the  honor  of  prac- 
ticalizing  the  thought  is  due  to  James  A.  McDougall. 
His  powerful  advocacy  of  the  measure  in  Congress  led  to 
the  first  action  of  the  Covernment  on  the  question,  and 
his  ready  learning  on  all  the  branches  of  the  subject 
effected  more  towards  its  completion  than  all  the  surveys 
put  together.  In  1855,  he  declined  a  renomination  for 
Congress,  and  resumed  the  practice  of  law  in  San  Fran- 
cisco. In  1861,  he  was  elected  a  United  States  Senator 
to  Congress,  and  came  forward  with  renewed  strength  in 
the  prosecution  of  his  favorite  measure. 

The  war  having  in  the  meantime  broken  out  between 
the  sections  North  and  South,  afforded  a  wide  field  for 
proving  the  utility  of  the  undertaking,  and  he  did  not 
fail  to  present  the  argument  in  its  new  light,  as  a  neces- 
sary war  measure.  At  this  period  his  party  being  in  a 
large  minority  in  Congress,  upon  others,  more  in  sym- 
pathy with  the  national  administration,  devolved  the 
chief  duty  of  presenting  the  question.  But  still,  upon 
the  shoulders  of  the  Western  Titan  rested  the  heaviest 
part  of  the  burthen.  Ably  seconded  by  Sargent  and  his 
colleagues,  all  difficulties  were  finally  removed,  and  he 
lived  to  see  the  darling  object  of  his  political  life  on  the 
'ligh  road  to  success. 


JAMES  A.    MCDOUGALL.  693 

In  addition  to  the  labors  he  performed  on  committee, 
as  Chairman  of  the  Pacific  Raikoad,  he  served  also,  and 
with  no  less  distinguished  honor,  on  the  Finance  Com- 
mittee, and  upon  that  of  ^aval  Affairs. 

Whilst  in  Congress,  his  principal  speeches,  aside  from 
those  on  the  Railroad,  were  delivered  on  the  subjects  of 
the  expulsion  of  Senators  Bright  and  W.  P.  Johnson;  on 
Emancipation;  on  Slavery  in  the  District  of  Columbia; 
on  the  establishment  of  a  Steam  Mail  Line  to  China  and 
Japan;  on  the  Civil  Rights  Bill;  on  Reconstruction;  on 
the  Restoration  of  the  Southern  States;  on  the  Freedmen's 
Bureau;  the  Continental  Telegraph  Lines;  the  National 
Academy;  and  upon  that  singular  subject,  the  sale  of 
liquor  by  retail  within  the  purlieus  of  the  Capitol. 

Upon  all  these  questions  he  spoke  with  the  learning 
of  a  scholar  and  the  moderation  of  a  statesman.  We 
doubt  if  there  has  ever  been  a  more  logical,  eloquent, 
and  unanswerable  argument  than  that  contained  in  his 
speech  delivered  in  the  Senate  of  the  United  States  on 
the  12th  March,  18G2,  on  the  subject  of  the  Right  of 
Confiscation  of  Southern  property.  He  threw  a  mighty 
blaze  of  historical  and  legal  light  upon  the  question,  that 
amazed  and  confounded  his  opponents;  and  he  silenced, 
if  he  did  not  convince  them.  It  was  in  this  celebrated 
speech  that  he  defined  his  position  on  the  question  of 
negro  slavery.  Standing  there  as  a  representative,  he 
did  not  hesitate  to  affirm : 

Do  not  understand  me,  Mr.  President,  as  being  in  any  sense,  in 
the  remotest  degree,  an  advocate  for  slavery  in  any  form.  I  have 
never,  since  I  have  had  opinions,  entertained  the  opinion  that  it 
could  exist  to  the  advantage  of  any  free  State.  I  regard  its  influ- 
ences as  being  worse  upon  the  white  than  upon  the  slave  poj^ulation. 
I  understand,  too,  that  when  I  present  my  opposition  to  this  meas- 
ure, I  come  in  contact  with  what  is  the  popular  opinion  and  feeling 
of  the  people  throughout  the  free  States.  That  cannot  measure  my 
conduct.  I  understand  the  business  of  a  Senator  here  in  the  pass- 
age of  laws  to  be  to  inquire  into  what  laws  are  necessary  and  just, 
what  laws  presented  are  impolitic  or  unjust,  and  to  give  his  support 
to  the  one,  and  his  opposition  to  the  other.  No  notion  of  popular 
opinion  should  or  will  control  me. 

But  lest  his  motives  might  be  impugned,  he  took  occa- 
sion also  to  say: 


694  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

Sir,  as  far  as  I  am  able  to  read  of  the  wisdom  taught  by  the  his- 
tory and  counselings  of  the  past,  the  measure  now  proposed  can 
never  secure  i3eace.  The  policy  involved  in  it  will  continue  an  angry, 
remDrselss^,  relentless  war,  which  if  it  do  not  involve  subjagation, 
will  involve  extirpation.  I  fear  that  the  country,  and  not  only  the 
country  but  the  Senate,  have  been  led  wild  with  anger;  that  they 
have  caught  some  of  the  angry  spirit  of  their  adversaries,  and  in- 
stead of  taking  lessons  from  the  great  States  of  the  world,  and  the 
greab  teachers  of  ancient  and  modern  times,  have  taken  their  advice 
from  Richmond  and  Montgomery. 

Bjt  Sanator  McDougall  Wcis  also  a  leader  of  public 
opinion  on  another  subject,  which  at  the  time  of  the  de- 
livery of  his  address  subjected  him  to  unworthy 'criticism 
and  ill-natured  comment.  We  allude  to  his  Franco- 
Mexican  speech  on  the  3d  February,  1863.  The  policy 
advocated  by  him  at  that  time  soon  afterwards  became 
the  settled  plan  of  the  Federal  Grovernment,  though  at 
the  moment  of  its  expression  no  statesman  was  more 
bitter  in  his  denunciations  than  Mr.  Secretary  Seward. 
This  led  to  some  ill-feeling  betwixt  the  two  statesmen, 
and  induced  General  McDougall  to  pay  a  very  equivocal 
compliment  to  the  American  premier.  It  is  related,  upon 
good  authority,  that  McDougall,  returning  home  one  night 
from  a  prolonged  session  of  the  Senate,  indulged  rather 
freely  in  his  favorite  beverage,  so  much  so  as  to  fall  down, 
without  the  power  of  self-elevation.  At  this  moment  a 
policeman  approached,  and  before  assisting  him  to  rise, 
asked  him  who  he  was.  He  answered  very  laconically, 
^'  Don't  you  see?  I'm  Sewardr 

This  anecdote  leads  us  to  remark  that  the  most  char- 
acteristic speech  he  ever  made  was  in  the  Senate,  not 
long  before  his  death,  on  the  sale  of  intoxicating  bev- 
erages within  the  Capitol  building.  This  speech  is  full 
of  the  most  delicate  wit,  subtle  irony,  and  eloquent 
learning.  Classical  quotations,  and  historical  incidents 
and  allusions,  abound  in  it  from  beginning  to  end.  As 
an  ironical  defence  of  drunkenness,  it  has  no  parallel  in 
English  literature;  and  though  McDougall  was  famous 
before  for  his  classics,  this  effort  left  him  without  a  peer 
in  the  Senate  of  the  United  States. 

As  a  specimen  of  McDougall' s  serious  style,  his  eulogy 
on  the  death  of  Col.  E.  D.  Baker,  Senator  from  Oregon, 


JAMES  A.    MCDOUGALL.  695 

and  killed  in  the  battle  of  Ball's  Bluff,  is  appended  to 
this  sketch.  No  finer  eulogy  than  this  was  ever  spoken 
upon  the  floors  of  Congress.  The  speech  upon  the  sale 
of  liquors  in  the  National  Capitol  will  also  be  found  in 
this  volume,  immediately  following  the  eulogy  just  re- 
ferred to. 

Yet,  with  all  his  talent,  learning,  and  industry,  he 
had  one  fault.  This  pursued  him  most  relentlessly  to  his 
grave,  and  he  died  the  victim  of  the  same  habits  that  cut 
off  Prentiss  in  the  splendor  of  his  career  and  the  meridian 
of  his  fame — the  same  enemy  that  throttled  Alexander 
the  Great,  conquered  Alcibiades,  and  killed  Lord  Clive ; 
and  though  we  could  not  pardon  his  self-indulgence 
during  life,  we  may  be  permitted  to  forgive  it,  now  that 
he  is  no  more.  JReguiescat  in  pace!  He  died  at  Albany, 
near  the  spot  of  his  birth,  on  the  30th  of  September, 
1867,  aged  fifty  years. 


Delivered  in  the  United  States  Senate,  December  11th,  a.  d.  1861. 


BY  GEN.  J.  A.  MCDOUGALL. 

Mr.  President:  Within  the  brief  period  I  have  occupied  a  seat  on 
this  floor,  I  have  listened  to  the  formal  announcement  of  the  decease 
of  the  two  Senators  nearest  to  me  by  the  ties  of  association  and 
friendship,  both  representative  men,  and  among  the  ablest  that  ever 
discoursed  counsel  in  this  Senate.  I  trust  I  shall  be  pardoned  if  it 
be  thought  there  is  something  of  pride  in  my  claim  of  friendship 
with  such  distinguished  and  not  to  be  forgotten  men.  The  l^te 
Senator  from  Illinois,  as  well  as  the  late  Senator  of  whom  I  am  about 
to  speak,  were  my  seniors  in  years,  and  much  more  largely  instructed 
than  myself  in  public  affairs.  Differing  as  they  had  for  a  period  of 
more  than  a  quarter  of  a  century,  they  had  met  together,  and  in  the 
maintenance  in  all  its  integrity  of  the  great  governmental  institution 
of  our  fathers,  they  were  one.  Coming  myself  a  stranger  to  your 
counsels,  I  looked  to  them  for  that  home  advice  in  which  there  is  no 
purpose  of  disguise  or  concealment.  Their  loss  has  been,  and  is,  to 
me  like  the  shadows  of  great  clouds;  but  while  I  have  felt,  and  now 


696  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

feel  their  loss,  as  companions,  friends  and  counselors  in  whose  truth 
I  trusted,  I  feel  that  no  sense  of  private  loss  should  find  expression 
when  a  nation  suffers.  I  may  say  here,  however,  that,  while  for 
the  loss  of  these  two  great  Senators  a  nation  suffers,  the  far  country 
whence  I  come  feels  the  suffering  of  a  double  loss.  They  were  both 
soldiers  and  champions  of  the  West — of  our  new  and  undeveloped 
possessions.  A  few  months  since,  the  people  of  the  Pacific,  from 
the  sea  of  Cortez  to  the  Straits  of  Fuca,  mourned  for  Douglas :  the 
same  people  mourn  for  Baker.  The  two  Senators  were  widely  dif- 
ferent men,  moulded  in  widely  different  forms,  and  they  walked  in 
widely  different  paths;  but  the  tread  of  their  hearts  kept  time,  and 
they  each  sought  a  common  goal,  only  by  different  paths. 

The  record  of  the  honorable  birth,  brilliant  life,  and  heroic  death 
of  the  late  Edward  Dickinson  Baker  has  been  already  made  by  a 
thousand  eloquent  pens.  That  record  has  been  read  in  cabin,  and 
in  hall,  from  Maine  to  furthest  Oregon.  I  offer  now  but  to  pay  to 
his  memory  the  tribute  of  my  love  and  praise.  While  paying  this 
tribute  with  a  proud  sadness,  I  trust  its  value  will  not  be  diminished, 
when  I  state  that  for  many  years,  and  until  the  recent  demands  of 
patriotism  extinguished  controversial  differences,  we  were  almost 
constant  adversaries  in  the  forum  and  at  the  bar.  A  great  writer,  in 
undertaking  to  describe  one  of  the  greatest  of  men,  said:  "Know 
that  there  is  not  one  of  you  who  is  aware  of  his  real  nature."  I 
think  that,  with  all  due  respect,  I  might  say  of  the  late  Senator  the 
same  thing  to  this  Senate,  as  I  am  compelled  to  say  it  to  myself.  Of 
all  the  men  I  have  ever  known  he  was  the  most  difficult  to  comprehend. 
He  was  a  many-sided  man.  Will,  mind,  power,  radiated  from  one 
centre  within  him,  in  all  directions;  and  while  the  making  of  that 
circle,  Vv^hich,  according  to  the  dreams  of  old  philosophy,  would  con- 
stitute a  perfect  being,  is  not  within  human  hope,  he  may  be  regarded 
as  one  who  at  least  illustrated  the  thought.  His  great  powers  cannot 
be  attributed  to  the  work  of  laborious  years.  They  were  not  his 
achievements.  They  were  gifts,  God-given.  His  sensations,  memory, 
thought,  and  action,  went  hand  in  hand  together,  with  a  velocity  and 
power  which,  if  not  always  exciting  admiration,  compelled  astonish- 
ment. 

Although  learned,  the  late  Senator  was  not  what  is  called  a  scholar. 
He  was  too  full  of  stirring  life  to  labor  among  the  mouldy  records  of 
dead  ages;  and  had  he  not  been,  the  wilderness  of  the  West  furnished 
no  field  for  the  exercise  of  mere  scholarly  accomplishments.  I  say 
the  late  Senator  was  learned.  He  was  skilled  in  metaphysics,  logic, 
and  law.  He  might  be  called  a  master  of  history,  and  of  all  the 
literature  of  our  own  language.  He  knew  much  of  music — not  only 
music  as  it  gives  present  pleasure  to  the  ear,  but  music  in  the  sense 
in  which  it  was  understood  by  the  old  seekers  after  -svisdom,  who  held 
that  in  harmonious  sounds  rested  some  of  the  great  secrets  of  the 
infinite.  Poetry  he  inhaled  and  expressed.  Tiie  afflatus  called  divine 
breathed  about  him.  Many  years  since,  on  the  then  wild  plains  of 
the  West,  in  the  middle  of  a  star-lit  night,  as  we  journeyed  together, 
I  heard  first  from  him  the  chant  of  that  noble  song,  The  Battle  of 


JAMES   A.    MCDOUGALL.  697 

Ivry.     Two  of  its  stanzas  impressed  me  then,  and  there  are  other 
reasons  why  they  impress  me  now : 

The  King  lias  come  to  marshal  us,  in  all  his  armor  drest; 

And  he  has  bound  a  snow-white  plume  upon  his  gallant  crest; 

He  looked  upon  his  people,  and  a  tear  was  in  his  eye ; 

He  looked  upon  the  traitors,  and  his  glance  was  stern  and  high; 

Right  graciously  he  smiled  on  us,  as  ran  from  ^\ing  to  wing, 

Down  all  our  line,  a  deafening  shout,  "  God  save  our  Lord  the  King!'* 

And  if  my  standard-bearer  fall,  and  fall  full  well  he  may, 

For  never  saw  I  promise  yet  of  such  a  bloody  fray. 

Press  where  ye  see  my  white  plume  shine,  amidst  the  ranks  of  war, 

And  be  your  oriflamme  to-day,  the  helmet  of  Navarre. 

Hurrah!  the  foes  are  moving;  hark  to  the  mingled  din 

Of  fife,  and  steed,  and  trump,  and  drum,  and  roaring  cul-verin. 

The  fiery  Duke  is  pricking  fast  across  Saint  Andrew's  plain. 

With  all  the  hirehng  chivalry  of  Gueldres  and  Almagne; 

"  Now  by  the  lips  of  those  ye  love,  fair  gentlemen  of  France, 

Charge!  for  the  golden  hhes:  now  upon  them  with  the  lance!" 

A  thousand  spurs  are  striking  deep,  a  thousand  spears  in  rest, 

A  thousand  loiights  are  pressing  close  behind  the  snow-white  crest; 

And  in  they  burst,  and  on  they  rushed,  while,  Hke  a  guiding  star, 

Amidst  the  thickest  carnage  blazed  the  helmet  of  Navarre. 

He  was  an  orator — not  an  orator  trained  to  the  model  of  the  Greek 
or  Eoman  school,  but  one  far  better  suited  to  our  age  and  people. 
He  was  a  master  of  dialectics.,  and  possessed  a  skill  and  power  in 
words  which  would  have  confounded  the  rhetoric  of  Gorgias,  and 
demanded  of  the  great  master  of  dialects  himself,  the  exact  use  of 
all  his  materials  of  wordy  warfare.  He  was  deeply  versed  in  all  that 
belongs  to  the  relations  and  conduct  of  all  forms  of  societies,  from 
families  to  States,  and  the  laws  which  have  and  do  govern  them. 
He  was  not  a  man  of  authorities,  simply  because  he  used  authorities 
only  as  the  rounds  whereby  to  ascend  to  principles.  Having  learned 
much,  he  was  a  remarkable  master  of  all  he  knew,  whether  it  was  to 
analyze,  generalize,  or  combine  his  vast  materials.  It  was  true  to 
him,  as  it  is  fei'ue  of  most  remarkable  minds,  that  he  did  not  always 
appear  to  be  all  he  was.  The  occasion  made  the  measure  of  the 
exhibition  of  his  strength.  "When  the  occasion  challenged  the  effort, 
he  could  discourse  as  cunningly  as  the  sage  of  Ithaca,  and  as  wisely 
as  the  king  of  Pylus. 

lie  was  a  soldier.  He  was  a  leader;  **  a  man  of  war,"  fit,  like  the 
Tachmite,  "to  sit  in  the  seat,  chief  among  the  captains."  Like  all 
men  who  possess  hero  blood,  he  loved  fame,  glory,  honorable  re- 
nown. He  thirsted  for  it  with  an  ardent  thirst,  as  did  Cicero  and 
Caesar:  and  what  was  that  nectar  in  which  the  gods  delighted  on 
high  Olympus  but  the  wine  of  praise  for  the  great  deeds  accomplished? 
"Would  that  he  might  have  lived,  so  that  his  great  sacrifice  might 
have  been  offered,  and  his  great  soul  gone  up  from  some  great 
field,  his  lips  bathed  with  the  nectar  that  he  loved!  None  ever  felt 
more  than  he — 

Since  all  must  life  resign, 

Those  sweet  dehghts  that  decorate  the  brave 
'  'Tis  folly  to  decline. 

And  steal  inglorious  to  the  silent  grave. 


698  REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OF   THE  PACIFIC. 

But  it  was  sometMng  more  than  the  fierce  thirst  for  glory  that  carried 
the  late  Senator  to  the  field  of  sacrifice.  No  one  felt  more  than  he 
the  majestic  dignity  of  the  great  cause  for  which  our  nation  now 
makes  war.  He  loved  freedom,  if  you  please;  Anglo-Saxon  freedom; 
>'or  he  was  one  of  that  great  old  race.  He  loved  this  land,  this  whole 
land.  He  had  done  much  to  conquer  it  from  the  wilderness;  and  by 
his  own  acts  he  had  made  it  his  land.  Hero  blood  is  patriot  blood. 
When  he  witnessed  the  storm  of  anarchy  with  which  the  madness  of 
depraved  ambition  sought  to  overwhelm  the  land  of  his  choice  and 
love;  when  he  heard  the  battle-call. 

Lay  down  the  ax,  fling  by  the  spade. 

Leave  in  its  track  the  toiUng  plowj 
The  rifle  and  the  bayonet  blade, 

For  arms  Hke  yours  are  fitter  now: 

And  let  the  hands  that  ply  the  pen. 

Quit  the  hght  task,  and  learn  to  wield 
The  horseman's  crooked  brand,  and  rein 

The  charger  on  the  battle-field. 

Our  country  calls;  away,  away! 

To  where  the  blood-streams  blot  the  green; 
Strike  to  defend  the  gentlest  sway 

That  time  in  aU  its  course  has  seen. 

It  was  in  the  spirit  of  the  patriot  hero  that  the  gallant  soldier, 
the  grave  Senator,  the  white-haired  man  of  counsel,  yet  full  of  youth 
as  full  of  years,  gave  answer,  as  does  the  war-horse,  to  the  trumpet's 
sound. 

The  wisdom  of  his  conduct  has  been  questioned.  Many  have 
thought  that  he  should  have  remained  for  counsel  in  this  hall.  Mr, 
President,  the  propriety  of  a  Senator  taking  upon  himself  the  duties 
;  of  a  soldier,  depends,  like  many  other  things,  on  circumstances; 
I  and  certainly  such  conduct  has  the  sanction  of  the  example  of  great 
i  names.  Socrates — who  was  not  of  the  councils  of  Athens  simply 
:  because  he  deemed  his  office  as  a  teacher  of  wisdom  a  higher  and 
i  nobler  one — did  not  think  it  unworthy  of  himself  to  serve  as  a  com- 
j  mon  soldier  in  battle;  and  when  Plato  seeks  best  to  describe  and 
j  most  to  dignify  his  great  master,  he  causes  Alcibiades,  among  other 
i  things,  to  say  of  him: 

I  ought  not  to  omit  what  Socrates  was  in  battle;  for  in  that  battle  after  which 
the  Generals  decreed  to  me  the  prize  of  courage,  Socrates  alone,  of  all  men,  was 
the  saviour  of  my  life,  standing  by  me  when  I  had  fallen  and  was  wounded,  and 
•preserving  both  myself  and  my  arms  from  the  enemy.  But  to  see  Socrates  when 
•our  army  was  defeated  and  scattered  in  flight  at  Dehas,  was  a  spectacle  worthy  to 
behold.  On  that  occasion  I  was  among  the  cavalry,  and  he  on  foot  heavily  armed. 
After  the  total  rout  of  our  troops  he  and  Laches  retreated  together.  I  came  up  by 
chance;  and  seeing  them,  bade  them  be  of  good  cheer,  for  that  I  would  not  leave 
them.  As  I  was  on  horseback,  and  therefore  less  occupied  by  a  regard  of  my  own 
situation,  I  could  better  observe  than  at  Potidoea  the  beautiful  spectacle  exhibited 
by  Socrates  on  this  emergency.  *  *  *  He  walked  and  darted  his  regards  around 
with  a  majestic  composure,  looking  tranquilly  both  on  his  friends  and  enemies;  so 
that  it  was  evident  to  every  one,  even  from  afar,  that  whoever  should  venture  to 
Attack  bim  would  encount^  a  desperate  resistance.    He  and  his  companion  thus 


JAMES  A.    MCDOUGALL.  699 

departed  in  safety ;  for  those  who  are  scattered  in  flight  are  pursued  and  killed, 
whilst  men  hesitate  to  touch  those  who  exhibit  such  a  countenance  as  that  of 
Socrates,  even  in  defeat. 

This  is  the  picture  of  a  sage  painted  by  a  sage;  and  why  may  not 
great  wisdom  be  the  strongest  element  of  a  great  war?  In  the  days 
when  the  States  of  Greece  were  free,  when  Kome  was  free,  when 
Venice  was  free,  who  but  their  great  statesmen,  counselors,  and 
senators,  led  their  armies  to  victorious  battle?  In  the  best  days  of 
all  the  great  and  free  States,  civil  place  and  distinction  was  never 
held  inconsistent  with  military  authority  and  conduct.  So  far  from 
it,  all  history  teaches  the  fact  that  those  who  have  proved  themselves 
most  competent  to  direct  and  administer  the  affairs  of  government, 
in  times  of  peace,  were  not  only  trusted,  but  were  best  trusted  with 
the  conduct  of  armies  in  times  of  war.  In  these  teachings  of  his- 
tory there  may  be  some  lessons  we  have  yet  to  learn;  and  that  we 
have  such  lessons  to  learn  I  know  was  the  strong  conviction  of  the 
late  Senator.  It  is  with  no  sense  of  satisfaction  that  I  feel  it  my 
duty  to  say  that  I  have  been  led  to  the  opinion  that  there  is  much 
soundness  in  the  opinion  he  entertained. 

It  is  but  a  brief  time  since  the  late  Senator  was  among  us,  main- 
taining our  countiy's  cause,  with  wise  counsel,  clothed  in  eloquent 
words.  When,  in  August  last,  his  duties  here  as  a  Senator  for  the 
time  ceased,  he  devoted  himself  exclusively  to  the  duties  of  a  soldier. 
Occupyin  ^  a  subordinate  position,  commanded  where  he  was  most 
fit  to  command,  he  received  his  orders.  He  saw  and  knew  the 
nature  of  the  enterprise  he  was  required  to  undertake;  he  saw  and 
knew  that  he  was  required  to  move  underneath  the  shadow  of  the 
wings  of  Azrael.  He  did  not,  he  would  not,  question  the  require- 
ment made  of  him.  His  motto  on  that  day  was:  "A  good  heart  and 
no  hope. "  He  knew,  as  was  known  at  Balaklava,  that  some  one  had 
blundered;  yet  he  said:  "Forward,  my  Brigade,  although  some  one 
has  blundered."  Was  this  reckless  rashness?  No!  It  may  be  called 
sacrifice,  self-sacrifice;  but  I,  who  know  the  man  who  was  the  late 
Senator — the  calm,  self-possessed  perfectness  of  his  valor — and  who 
have  studied  all  the  details  of  the  field  of  his  last  offering  with  a  sad 
earnestness,  say  to  you,  sir,  to  this  Senate,  to  the  country,  and  par- 
ticularly to  the  people  of  the  land  of  the  West,  where  most  and  l3est 
he  is  known  and  loved,  that  no  rash,  reckless  regardlessness  of  danger 
can  be  attributed  to  him.  It  is  but  just  to  say  of  him  that  his  con- 
duct sprung  from  a  stem,  hero,  patriot,  martyr  spirit,  that  enabled 
him  to  dare,  unflinchingly,  with  a  smile  to  the  green  earth,  and  \vith 
a  smile  to  the  bright  heavens,  and  a  cheer  to  his  brave  companions, 
ascend  the  altar  of  sacrifice. 

A  poet  of  the  middle  ages,  speaking  of  Carthage  as  then  a  dead 
city,  the  grave  of  which  was  scarcely  discernible,  says: 

For  cities  die,  kingdoms  die; 
A  little  sand  and  grass  covers  all 
That  was  once  lofty  in  them,  and 
Glorious;  and  yet  man,  forsooth, 
Disdains  that  he  is  mortal!  Oh, 
Mind  of  ours,  inordinate  and  proud! 


700  REPRESENTATIVE    MEN    OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

It  is  true  cities  and  kingdoms  die,  but  the  eternal  tliouglit  lives 
on.  Great  thought,  incorporate  with  great  action,  does  not  die,  but 
lives  a  universal  life,  and  its  power  is  felt  vibrating  through  all  spirit 
and  throughout  all  the  ages.  I  doubt  whether  or  not  we  should 
mourn  for  any  of  the  dead.  I  am  confident  that  there  should  be  no 
mourning  for  those  who  render  themselves  up  as  sacrifices  in  any 
great,  just,  and  holy  cause.  It  better  becomes  us  to  praise  and 
dignify  them.  It  was  the  faith  of  an  ancient  people  that  the  souls 
of  heroes  did  not  rest  until  their  great  deeds  had  been  hymned  by 
bards,  to  the  sounds  of  martial  music.  Bards  worthy  of  the  ancient 
time  have  hymned  the  praise  of  the  great  citizen.  Senator,  and  soldier, 
who  has  left  us.     They  have  showered  on  his  memory 

Those  leaves,  which  for  the  eternal  few 
Who  wander  o'er  the  paradise  of  fame. 
In  sacred  dedication  ever  grew. 

I  would  that  I  were  able  to  add  a  single  leaf  to  the  eternal  ama- 
ranth. In  long  future  years,  when  our  nights  of  horror  shall  have 
passed,  and  there  shall  have  come  again  *'  the  welcome  morning 
with  its  rays  of  peace,"  young  seekers  after  fame  and  young  lovers 
of  freedom,  throughout  all  this  land,  yea,  and  other  and  distant 
lands,  will  recognize,  honor,  and  imitate  our  late  associate  as  one  of 
the  undying  dead. 


On  the  Resolution  to  Prohibit  the  Sale  of  Spirituous  Liquors  in  the  National 
Capitol  Building,  dehvered  in  the  United  States  Senate,  April  11th,  1866. 

Mr.  President:  It  was  once  said  that  there  were  as  many  minds 
as  men,  and  there  is  no  end  of  wrangling.  I  had  occasion  some 
years  since  to  discourse  vdth  a  reverend  doctor  of  divinity  from  the 
State  which  has  the  honor  to  be  the  birthplace,  I  think,  of  the 
present  President  of  this  body.  While  I  was  discoursing  with  him, 
a  lot  of  vile  rapscallions  invited  me  to  join  them  at  the  bar.  I  de- 
clined, out  of  respect  to  the  reverend  gentleman  in  whose  presence 
I  then  was.  As  soon  as  the  occasion  had  passed,  I  remarked  to  the 
reverend  doctor,  *'Do  not  understand  that  I  declined  to  go  and  join 
those  young  men  at  the  bar  because  I  have  any  objection  to  that 
thing,  for  it  is  my  habit  to  drink  always  in  the  front  and  not  beliind 
the  door.''  He  looked  at  me  with  a  certain  degree  of  interrogation. 
I  then  asked  him,  "Doctor,  what  was  the  first  miracle  worked  by 
our  great  Master?"  He  hesitated,  and  I  said  to  him,  *'  Was  it  not 
at  Cana  in  Galilee,  where  he  converted  the  water  into  wine,  at  a 
marriage-feast?"  He  assented.  I  asked  him  then,  "After  the  ark 
had  floated  on  the  tempestuous  seas  for  forty  days  and  nights,  and 


JAMES   A.    MCDOUGALL.  701 

as  it  descended  upon  the  dry  lands,  what  was  the  first  thing  done  by- 
father  Noah?"  He  did  not  know  that  exactly.  "Well,"  said  I, 
*'  did  he  not  plant  a  vine?"     Yes;  he  remembered  it  then. 

I  asked  him,  "Do  you  remember  any  great  poet  that  ever  illus- 
trated the  higher  fields  of  humanity  that  did  not  dignify  the  use  of 
wine,  from  old  Homer  down?"  He  did  not.  I  asked,  "Do  you 
know  any  great  philosopher  that  did  not  use  it  for  the  exaltation  of 
his  intelligence?  Do  you  think,  doctor,  that  a  man  who  lived  upon 
pork  and  beef  and  corn-bread  could  get  up  into  the  superior  re- 
gions— into  the  ethereal?    No;  he  must 

'  Take  nectar  on  high  Olympus, 
And  mighty  mead  in  Valhalla.'  " 

I  said  to  him  again,  "Doctor,  you  are  a  scholarly  man,  of  course — 
a  doctor  of  divinity — a.  graduate  of  Yale :  do  you  remember  Plato's 
Symposium?"  Yes,  he  remembered  that.  I  referred  him  to  the 
occasion  when  Agatho,  having  won  the  prize  of  Tragedy  at  the 
Olympic  Games  at  Corinth,  on  coming  back  to  Athens,  was  feted  by 
the  nobility  and  aristocracy  of  that  city;  for  it  was  a  proud  triumph 
to  Athens  to  win  the  prize  of  Tragedy.  They  got  together  at  the 
house  of  Phsedrus,  and  they  said,  "Now,  we  have  been  every  ni5Tht 
for  these  last  six  nights  drunk :  let  us  be  sober  to-night,  and  we  \^  ill 
start  a  theme;"  which  they  passed  around  the  table,  as  the  sun  goes 
round,  or  as  they  drank  their  wine,  or  as  men  tell  a  story.  They 
started  a  theme,  and  the  theme  was  love — not  love  in  the  vulgar 
sense,  but  in  its  high  sense — love  of  all  that  is  beautiful.  After  they 
had  gone  through,  and  after  Socrates  had  j)ronounced  his  judgment 
about  the  true  and  beautiful,  in  came  Alcibiades  with  a  drunken 
body  of  Athenian  boys,  with  garlands  around  their  heads  to  crown 
Agatho  and  to  crown  old  Socrates;  and  they  said  to  those  assembled, 
"This  will  not  do;  we  have  been  drinking,  and  you  have  not."  And 
after  Alcibiades  had  made  his  talk  in  pursuance  of  the  argument,  in 
which  he  undertook  to  dignify  Socrates,  as  I  remember  it,  they  re- 
quired (after  the  party  had  agTeed  to  drink,  it  being  quite  late  in  the 
evening,  and  they  had  finished  their  business  in  the  way  of  discus- 
sion) that  Socrates  should  drink  two  measures  for  every  other  man's 
one,  because  he  was  better  able  to  stand  it.  And  so  one  after 
another  they  were  laid  down  on  the  lounges  in  the  Athenian  style, 
all  except  an  old  physician  named  Aristodemus,  and  Plato  makes 
him  the  hardest-headed  fellow  except  Socrates.  He  and  Socrates 
stuck  at  it  until  the  grey  of  the  morning,  and  then  Socrates  took  his 
bath  and  went  down  to  the  groves  and  talked  academic  knowledge. 

After  citin^this  incident,  I  said  to  this  divine,  "  Do  you  remem- 
ber that  Lord  JBacon  said  that  a  man  should  get  druiik  at  least  once 
a  month,  and  that  Montaigne,  the  French  philosopher,  endorsed 
the  proposition?" 

I  said  to  him  further,  "  These  exaltants  that  bring  us  up  above 
the  common  measure  of  the  brute,  wine  and  oil,  elevate  us,  enable 
us  to  seize  great  facts,  inspirations,  which,  once  possessed,  are  ours 
forever.     And  those  who  never  go  beyond  the  mere  beastly  means 


702  REPRESENTATIVE   MEN   OF   THE    PACIFIC. 

of  animal  support,  never  live  in  the  high  planes  of  life,  and  cannot 
achieve  them.     I  believe  in  women,  wine,  whisky,  and  war." 

The  reverend  doctor  replied,  "  Well,  General,  you  are  right;  but 
I  cannot  afford  to  say  it." 

I  do  not  know  but  that  it  would  be  well  for  the  sober  Senator 
from  California  to  indulge  himself  somewhat  more  in  generous  wine; 
and  I  do  not  know  but  that  it  would  be  of  service  to  the  Senator  from 
New  Hampshire,  and  I  am  sure  it  would  have  a  kindly  influence 
upon  the  Senator  from  Massachusetts.  I  think  all  these  propositions, 
all  these  regulations,  all  this  style  of  determining  liberties  that  ought 
to  be  common  to  all  men,  by  virtue  of  ismatical  influences,  is  wrong, 
and  I  utterly  protest  against  it.  I  think  it  was  well  when  we  had 
our  lunch-room  in  the  Senate  chamber,  where  we  quietly  sat  down 
and  drank  our  wines  at  our  pleasure.  The  times  have  come  to  be  so 
false  that  men  dare  not  say  what  they  honestly  think  to  be  the  truth 
and  the  right.  That  sin  of  cowardice  shall  never  come  to  my  door. 
I  say  the  whole  proposition  is  wrong.  Let  the  Senator  from  Massa- 
chusetts, if  he  chooses,  drink  his  wine  as  his  forefathers  did  before 
they  cut  down  all  the  apple-trees  in  that  State.  Because  apple- 
trees  raised  apples,  and  apples  made  cider,  and  cider  made  brandy, 
they  cut  them  down  all  through  New  England;  but  in  his  grand- 
father's time,  every  gentleman  of  Massachusetts,  or  every  man  who 
was  able  to  afford  it,  had  on  his  side-board  a  bottle  of  good  apple 
brandy,  and  he  offered  it  to  his  guests  the  moment  he  received  them. 
Those  were  the  good  old  times  when  gentlemen  were  abounding*  in 
the  land.  This  kind  of  regulation  tends  to  decorate  humanity  and 
to  degrade  the  dignity  of  the  Senate. 


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